Þröstur Leó Gunnarsson


Þröstur Leó Gunnarsson, born 23 April 1961 in Reykjavík, Iceland, is an Icelandic stage, film and television actor.

Early life

Þröstur Leó Gunnarsson graduated from the Icelandic School of Drama in 1985. He then began his career onstage at the Leikfélag Reykjavíkur, Reykjavik's premier theatre company, where he appeared in productions as: John Steinbeck's' The Grapes of Wrath, William Shakespeare's Hamlet, Molière's Tartuffe, Anton Chekhov's Platonov and Birgir Sigurðsson's Degi vonar.

Stage and film career

Gunnarsson's first film role came in the 1986 Hilmar Oddsson-directed drama Eins og skepnan deyr. He then followed in a number of films and television movies. He is possibly best recalled internationally for his roles in Baltasar Kormákur's 2000 romantic comedy 101 Reykjavík, opposite Spanish actress Victoria Abril, Kormákur's 2002 drama Hafið, 2002's United States/Icelandic coproduction of No Such Thing, a bilingual fantasy starring Sarah Polley, Helen Mirren and Julie Christie, and Dagur Kári's 2003 drama Nói albínói. For his role in Nói albínói, Gunnarsson won Best Supporting Actor at the 5th Edda Awards.
In 2008, Gunnarsson won Iceland's Edda Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the Baltasar Kormákur directed drama Brúðguminn.
In May 2009, Gunnarsson began directing the play Við Borgum, Við Ekki! Borgum Ekki!, a comedy centering on the 2008–2012 Icelandic financial crisis at the Borgarleikhúsið Reykjavik City Theatre.
In November 2009, he was the beneficiary of the Mrs. Stefania Guðmundsdóttir Memorial Fund, a fund established in 1938 to promote Icelandic drama and theatre.

Filmography