Tommy Wirkola
Tommy Wirkola | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Born | 6 December 1979 Alta, Norway |
| Education | Bond University |
| Occupation(s) | Film director, screenwriter, producer, actor |
Tommy Wirkola (born 6 December 1979)[1] is a Norwegian filmmaker. He is known for his film work in hybrid thrillers that combine horror, action and satire, including Dead Snow (2009) and Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead (2014), which were both selected for the Sundance Film Festival.[2]
Career
Wirkola is of Sami-Finnish ancestry.[3]
His first film was 2007's Kill Buljo, which he co-wrote with Stig Frode Henriksen.[4] They later collaborated on the 2009 horror comedy Dead Snow,[5] the 2010 mockumentary Kurt Josef Wagle and the Legend of the Fjord Witch,[6] and the 2014 sequel to Dead Snow, Red vs. Dead.[7][8]
In 2012 Wirkola directed & produced the television comedy series Hellfjord. Consisting of seven thirty minute episodes, the series is about an Oslo police officer who is banished to a small village after accidentally killing his police horse.[9]
Wirkola's first English-language, large-budget film, Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters, was released in 2013 to mainly negative reviews. Starring Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton, the film was nevertheless a financial success, grossing $226.3 million worldwide on a budget of $50 million.[10][11]
What Happened to Monday, a science fiction film starring Noomi Rapace and Willem Dafoe, and the dark comedy The Trip, also starring Rapace, were released in 2017 and 2021 respectively.
Wirkola's next film, Violent Night, a dark comedy starring David Harbour as a vigilante Santa Claus, was released in December 2022.[12] The film received generally positive reviews from critics and grossed $76.6 million worldwide.[13]
Wirkola co-directed the 2024 animated musical sex comedy Spermageddon, a dual narrative focusing on both a teenage couple having sex for the first time and Simen the Semen and his friends in a quest for the Egg.[14] The Hollywood Reporter stated that the film seemed "destined for cult status."[15]
In May 2024, it was announced that Wirkola had signed with Columbia Pictures to develop a survival thriller titled Beneath the Storm, with Phoebe Dynevor cast in the lead role.[16] That August, principal photography began in Australia, with Whitney Peak and Djimon Hounsou joining the cast.[17] In March 2025, the film was renamed Shiver.[18]
Filmography
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Editor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Remake | Yes | No | No |
| 2007 | Kill Buljo | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 2009 | Dead Snow | Yes | Yes | No |
| 2010 | Kurt Josef Wagle and the Legend of the Fjord Witch[19] | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 2013 | Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters | Yes | Yes | No |
| 2014 | Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead | Yes | Yes | No |
| 2017 | What Happened to Monday | Yes | No | No |
| 2021 | The Trip | Yes | Yes | No |
| 2022 | Violent Night | Yes | No | No |
| 2024 | Spermageddon | Yes[a] | Yes | No |
| 2026 | Shiver | Yes | Yes | No |
Acting roles
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Remake | Attendant 2 |
| 2007 | Kill Buljo | Sid Wisløff |
| 2009 | Dead Snow | Dying Zombie |
| Tomme Tønner | Gjørme-Knut | |
| 2013 | Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters | Deputy #4 |
Accolades
| Year | Work | Awards | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
2009
|
Toronto After Dark Film Festival Audience Awards
|
Best Feature Film | Winner | |
| Best Horror Movie | Nominee | |||
| Best Foreign Movie | Nominee | |||
| 2010 | Best Innovation | Nominee | ||
2014
|
Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters | Favorite Horror Movie | Nominee | |
Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival Choice Awards
|
Audience Award for Feature Film | Winner | ||
| Best Director | Winner | |||
| Best International Film | Nominee | |||
Fantastic Fest Gutbuster Comedy Features Awards
|
Best Picture | Winner | ||
| Best Screenplay | Winner | |||
| Best Screenplay | Winner | |||
Toronto After Dark Film Festival Audience Awards
|
Best Feature Film | Winner | ||
| Best Film to Watch with a Crowd | Winner | |||
| 2017 | What Happened to Monday | Locarno Film Festival | Variety Piazza Grande Award | Nominee |
Notes
- ^ Co-directed with Rasmus A. Sivertsen
References
- ^ "Nå hopper Wirkola av". DN.no. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
- ^ Fouché, Gwladys (2 February 2009). "Dead Snow cashes in on the vogue for film Nazis, with added snow". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
- ^ Kautto, Hanne (5 September 2012). "Pihla Viitalalla iso rooli Hollywood-leffassa". yle.fi (in Finnish). Retrieved 8 April 2024.
- ^ Kill Buljo – Dimension Extreme Archived 14 May 2009 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "DØD SNØ – crossingEurope". Crossingeurope.at. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
- ^ Juan of the Dead (26 February 2010). "The Director Of DEAD SNOW And KILL BULJO Takes The Piss Out Of First-Person Horror With KURT JOSEF WAGLE AND THE LEGEND OF THE FJORD WITCH". Twitchfilm.net. Archived from the original on 1 March 2010. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
- ^ "Director Tommy Wirkola Talks HANSEL AND GRETEL: WITCH HUNTERS and DEAD SNOW". Collider. 20 November 2013. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
- ^ Kevin Melrose (12 February 2013). "Wirkola Plans Dead Snow Sequel". Spinoff.comicbookresources.com. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
- ^ "Hellfjord". fantasticfest.com. 26 February 2010. Retrieved 19 August 2017.
- ^ "Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Archived from the original on 19 August 2019. Retrieved 17 June 2013.
- ^ New Scribe to Sweeten 'Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters'
- ^ McCall, Kevin (14 September 2022). "David Harbour's Holiday Flick 'Violent Night' to Screen at NYCC". Collider. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
- ^ "Violent Night (2022)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
- ^ Del Don, Muriel (19 June 2024). "Review: Spermageddon". Cineuropa. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
- ^ Mintzer, Jordan (14 June 2024). "'Spermageddon' Review: Outrageously Raunchy Animated Feature Seems Destined for Cult Status". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
- ^ Grobar, Matt (13 May 2024). "Phoebe Dynevor to Star In Shark Thriller For Sony; Tommy Wirkola Directing". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 3 August 2025.
- ^ Gajewski, Ryan (14 August 2024). "Phoebe Dynevor Shark Thriller From Tommy Wirkola Gets Title and Summer 2025 Release". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 3 August 2025.
- ^ Pedersen, Erik; Tapp, Tom (24 March 2025). "Sony's Shark Thriller Starring Phoebe Dynevor Surfaces With New Title & Year-Later Release Date; 'Street Fighter' Off Schedule". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 3 August 2025.
- ^ Turek, Ryan (26 February 2010). "Dead Snow Director Returns With Fjord Witch". ShockTillYouDrop. Archived from the original on 14 August 2012. Retrieved 3 March 2014.