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Pernilla August

  • Actress
  • Director
  • Writer
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Pernilla August in Beyond (2010)
Young Royals: Season 1
Play trailer0:48
Young Royals (2021–2024)
25
19 Videos
71 Photos
Pernilla August started acting as a child, performing in plays at Vår teater and at school. In 1979 she was accepted at the Statens scenskola to study acting professionally. Director Ingmar Bergman took note of her early and cast her as a nanny in his Fanny and Alexander (1982).

In 1982 she got married to author Klas Östergren and started work at the Folkteatern in Gävle, appearing in August Strindberg's A Dreamplay and Anton Chekhov's Three Sisters. She returned a few years later to the Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm for roles in William Shakespeare's Hamlet and Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House (as Nora).

Until then she hadn't had any bigger experience of television or movies but Ingmar Bergman specifically asked for her to play his mother in the biographical The Best Intentions (1992) By then her marriage was over and she started a relationship with director Bille August whom she married in 1991 - and had her name changed for the second time. He offered her a role in his The House of the Spirits (1993), but due to her pregnancy the role went to Winona Ryder instead.

She has admirably managed an international career despite having three daughters. She is best known for her appearances in films like Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999) or I Am Dina (2002).
BornFebruary 13, 1958
  • More at IMDbPro
    • Contact info
    • Agent info
    • Resume
BornFebruary 13, 1958
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • View contact info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 18 wins & 18 nominations total

    Photos71

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    + 67
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    Known for

    Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Anthony Daniels, Liam Neeson, Jake Lloyd, Kenny Baker, Ahmed Best, Keira Knightley, Ray Park, and Peter Serafinowicz in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)
    Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
    6.5
    • Shmi Skywalker
    • 1999
    Pernilla August, Max von Sydow, Börje Ahlstedt, Lena Brogren, Samuel Fröler, Björn Granath, Eva Gröndahl, Lennart Hjulström, Björn Kjellman, Mona Malm, Gunilla Nyroos, Ghita Nørby, and Michael Segerström in The Best Intentions (1992)
    The Best Intentions
    7.7
    • Anna Bergman
    • 1992
    Pernilla August in Private Confessions (1996)
    Private Confessions
    7.2
    • Anna
    • 1996
    Samuel L. Jackson, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Anthony Daniels, Frank Oz, Kenny Baker, Hayden Christensen, Temuera Morrison, Bodie Taylor, and Richard Stride in Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002)
    Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones
    6.6
    • Shmi Skywalker
    • 2002

    Credits

    Edit
    IMDbPro

    Actress



    • Tordyveln flyger i skymningen
      • Released
      • TV Mini Series
      • 2025
    • The Dance Club
      • In Production
      • 2025
    • To Cook a Bear
      • Madam Sjödahl
      • Post-production
      • TV Series



    • Melinda Kinnaman and Kerstin Linden in Ronja the Robber's Daughter (2024)
      Ronja the Robber's Daughter
      6.4
      TV Series
      • Valdir
      • 2024
    • Jana - Marked for Life (2024)
      Jana - Marked for Life
      6.2
      TV Series
      • Margaretha Berzelius
      • 2024
    • Midsummer Night (2024)
      Midsummer Night
      6.6
      TV Mini Series
      • Carina
      • 2024
    • Young Royals (2021)
      Young Royals
      8.2
      TV Series
      • Kristina
      • 2021–2024
    • Pernilla August, Rolf Lassgård, Asta Kamma August, and Alba August in Blackwater (2023)
      Blackwater
      6.9
      TV Mini Series
      • Annie Raft (1991)
      • 2023
    • Surprise (2023)
      Surprise
      6.2
      Short
      • Ingrid
      • 2023
    • Johan Rheborg in Kenny Starfighter (1997)
      Kenny Starfighter
      7.5
      TV Series
      • Kenny's Memorymatic
      • Kenny's Memorymatic (voice)
      • 2022
    • The Ape Star (2021)
      The Ape Star
      5.6
      • Gorillan
      • 2021
    • Ulrich Thomsen in Face to Face (2019)
      Face to Face
      6.8
      TV Series
      • Maja
      • 2021
    • The Investigation (2020)
      The Investigation
      7.6
      TV Mini Series
      • Ingrid Wall
      • 2020
    • Life-Giver (2020)
      Life-Giver
      Short
      • Astrid (old)
      • 2020
    • Armand Mirpour, Siham Shurafa, and Pablo Leiva Wenger in Allt jag inte minns (2019)
      Allt jag inte minns
      6.2
      TV Mini Series
      • Gunilla
      • 2019
    • Emily Barclay, Emma Booth, and Patrick Brammall in Glitch (2015)
      Glitch
      7.2
      TV Series
      • Nicola Heysen
      • 2017–2019
    • Swoon (2019)
      Swoon
      5.9
      • Elin Lindgren
      • 2019
    • Pernilla August, Peter Haber, Olle Sarri, Malin Levanon, Vera Vitali, and Mahmut Suvakci in Britt-Marie Was Here (2019)
      Britt-Marie Was Here
      5.5
      • Britt-Marie
      • 2019

    Director



    • Scenes from the Nigh (2018)
      Scenes from the Nigh
      6.2
      Short
      • Director
      • 2018
    • Carsten Bjørnlund, Trine Dyrholm, Marie Bach Hansen, and Mikkel Boe Følsgaard in The Legacy (2014)
      The Legacy
      7.6
      TV Series
      • Director
      • 2014–2017
    • A Serious Game (2016)
      A Serious Game
      6.4
      • Director
      • 2016
    • Beyond (2010)
      Beyond
      7.0
      • Director
      • 2010
    • Blindgångare
      6.8
      Short
      • Director
      • 2005

    Writer



    • Beyond (2010)
      Beyond
      7.0
      • screenplay
      • 2010

    • In-development projects at IMDbPro

    Videos19

    Trailer
    Trailer 1:27
    Trailer
    21
    Official Trailer
    Trailer 2:12
    Official Trailer
    Official Trailer
    Trailer 2:12
    Official Trailer
    Trailer [OVS]
    Trailer 1:42
    Trailer [OVS]
    1
    3D Re-release Version
    Trailer 1:34
    3D Re-release Version
    5443
    The Best Intentions
    Trailer 2:19
    The Best Intentions
    11
    The Ape Star
    Trailer 1:41
    The Ape Star

    Personal details

    Edit
    • Alternative names
      • Pernilla Wallgren
    • Height
      • 5′ 8″ (1.73 m)
    • Born
      • February 13, 1958
      • Stockholm, Stockholms län, Sweden
    • Spouses
        Bille August1991 - 1997 (divorced, 2 children)
    • Children
      • Alba August
    • Parents
        Lo Hertzman-Ericson
    • Other works
      August Strindberg's 'A Dreamplay' at the Royal Dramatic Theatre, Stockholm, Sweden.
    • Publicity listings
      • 2 Interviews
      • 2 Articles
      • 1 Pictorial
      • 3 Magazine Cover Photos

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Shmi Skywalker was her first English-speaking role, and at first she was reluctant to take it, fearing audiences would not be able to understand her English very well. George Lucas assured her that it would be fine, and joked that Shmi came from a Swedish-speaking part of the galaxy. This turned out to be strangely appropriate, as her on-screen son Hayden Christensen and grandson Mark Hamill both have Swedish ancestry as well.

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