Nikolaj Coster-Waldau is up to the job as the ultimate ‘despicable’ womanizer in “The Other Woman” starring alongside Cameron Diaz, Leslie Mann and Kate Upton.
Nikolaj plays Mark, a suave and sophisticated man who is every girl’s dream – and is seeing the equally beautiful and powerful lawyer Carly (Diaz). But after Carly discovers that Mark is a married man, she tries to get her ruined life back on track. But when she accidentally meets the wife he’s been cheating on (Leslie Mann), she realizes they have much in common, and her sworn enemy becomes her greatest friend. When yet another affair is discovered (Kate Upton), all three women team up to plot mutual revenge on their cheating, lying, three-timing sob.
In the role of charismatic liar Mark King, “Game of Thrones” star Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, surprised everyone with his comedic chops. Producer Julie Yorn notes: “We just got incredibly lucky with Nikolaj. We knew he certainly had the dash and good looks to be the leading man, but he came in and did this one scene where he comes undone and it was unbelievable.”
Writer Melissa Stack notes that, “Nikolaj was able to be vicious and charming in the span of ten seconds and that’s talent and also a lot of hard work, preparation and thought. He has some really tricky bits of business where he has to be the captivating snake, which is not an easy thing.”
The Danish actor sparked to playing the seductive bad guy for whom karmic repercussions are, well, a bitch. But the actor doesn’t see Mark as a cartoon cad. “I think Mark loves his wife,” says Coster-Waldau. “He and Kate have been together a long time, and I think in his mind he treats her really well. I don’t think it’s unusual to meet a guy who believes that because he takes home a lot of money, it gives him the right to have a bit of fun on the side. It’s just pure instinct. What can Mark do? He can’t stop himself. He believes himself to be a good guy.” He continues, “Mark likes to fall in love, and I think the problem with a guy like that is he falls in love with himself falling in love.”
On working with Patricia Field who helmed the costume for the movie, Nikolaj notes that “My personal style is as far removed from Mark’s as you can imagine, but it was a lot of fun working with Patricia. She is a wonderful lady. She has this husky voice. It was a privilege to get to work with her and her whole team. I've never worn anything as expensive as I wore in this film. There was a costume change for every scene basically, because Mark is one of those people who needs everyone to see how expensive his clothes are. Those suits were really exquisite and you could tell the quality. It was very important to the character that the wealth was shown, so he would wear Tom Ford suits. He would drive the most expensive car; I drove a light blue Aston Martin Convertible. It was beautiful, I enjoyed it. And I love dressing up. That's part of my job. It's what builds character and clearly Mark needed those really sharp suits. But in my own life I wear jeans and a tee shirt. It's very basic. I put on whatever is at the top of the pile and then once every two weeks I'll turn the tee shirt pile over so I don't just use the same one. It's boring. But I like it, it is comfortable.”
A graduate of the National Theater School in Denmark, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau is best known for his starring role as Jaime Lannister in the massively successful TV series, “Game of Thrones.” About to enter its fourth season, it was nominated for an Emmy in 2011. In 2001, Nikolaj starred in Ridley Scott’s multi Oscar winning drama “Black Hawk Down,” which was followed by “Enigma.” His films include “Kingdom of Heaven,” “Wimbledon,” “Firewall,” “Headhunters,” “Night Watch,” “Rembrandt,” and “Blekingegade,” a high-profile Danish mini-series. Recent projects include Guillermo Del Toro’s “Mama” and “Oblivion” with Tom Cruise.
It’s a date with your girls when “The Other Woman” opens May 7 in theaters nationwide from 20th Century Fox to be distributed by Warner Bros. (PR)
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