She is still hyper intelligent and super sexy. She still wears leather trousers. And still drives around in her olive-green Porsche 911. Fans know then: Sofia Helin is back as messed-up detective Saga Norén in season 3 of The Bridge. Gentlemen's Watch spoke to the Swedish actress in Malmö. "The series almost demolished me physically and emotionally," she said.
This interview was published in Gentlemen's Watch, winter 2015/16.
Text: Eric le Duc. Photography: Lumière
Malmö, the chic Clarion Hotel. In the Skybar overlooking the Øresund spring (The Bridge!), we wait for our interview with Sofia Helin. The lead actress from The Bridge is punctual, greets us warmly and sits down. But before we can fire off the first question about the brand new, third season of the hit series, the actress herself takes the floor. "Before we start, I would like to say something. Namely that I think all European countries should open their borders to refugees from the Middle East. On television, I saw how a father and daughter were arrested at the Hungarian border. Then you are fleeing war, you have to go to jail as an illegal in safe Europe for three years.
Ten years ago, Western Europe was still an area of freedom, equality and solidarity. But by now we have long since lost our innocence. Europe has become a harsh continent that has squandered its ideals and looks only at the wallet. We should all be ashamed to death."
Tracker with Asperger's
So, the tone is set. Sofia Helin is as straightforward as her character Saga Norén in The Bridge. But where Sofia is naturally like that, Saga's almost brutally directness is a symptom of Asperger's Syndrome. This brain disorder makes the Swedish sleuth a social misfit who regularly clashes with her superiors, colleagues and anyone who crosses her path. Who doesn't remember the scene from season 2 where Saga walks into a bar and asks a complete stranger if he wants to have sex with her. Only to find herself dead in bed after the deed, looking at the gory crime scene photos. "For my role, I did a lot of research on Asperger's," says Helin. "I read books, watched interviews and talked to patients. I got letters from the Asperger Foundation and people with this syndrome saying they were so happy with my role. Because I don't portray Saga with her Asperger's as a patient, but as a heroine.
Eventually, Asperger's became such a big part of my personality that I was trapped in my own delusional world. A brain specialist friend told me then that it can be dangerous to play someone else for long periods of time. Your brain actually starts behaving differently, which also makes you believe you are that other person. Fortunately, that doctor then taught me how to distance myself from my character. When I got home after a filming day, I would still be in Saga mode for a while. But after an hour, I was just cosy Sofia again."
Scarred for life
Her dangerous flirtation with Asperger's marks the actress' skill and dedication. But however convincingly she portrays the Malmö detective, Saga Norén is nothing like 43-year-old Sofia Margareta Helin from Hovsta, Sweden. Sofia is just Sofia, happily married to priest Daniel Götschenhjelm and mother of little son Ossian and little daughter Nike. So whether, like Saga, she might like sports cars? "Not that either," she laughs. "I'm not interested in them and wouldn't want one. That Saga drives a Porsche, by the way, is a coincidence. When the makers wanted to make her a bit tougher in season 1, they borrowed the Porsche from a set employee. It is a terrible old barrel with rusty suspensions, a rotten gearbox and doors that almost fall off. It is actually no longer responsible to drive it."
No, the only similarity between Saga and Sofia is the scar on her upper lip, a memento of a serious accident from 1996. Sofia is on her way to the film academy when her bicycle breaks in half on a bridge(!). She falls, loses consciousness and wakes up in an ambulance. Initial diagnosis: several broken bones, a concussion, broken front teeth and a torn lip.
Difficult, lonely childhood
The scar for life does not stop twenty-something Sofia from becoming an actress. Indeed, the accident makes her even more determined to break through later on stage, screen and tube. Because acting is not only an ambition, it is also a way out. After the death of her brother and grandmother (killed in a car accident), a childhood full of drug abuse and "a divorce" (between whom she leaves open), Sofia sees film school as an escape from her troubled young years. "At first, acting was just a dream," Sofia explains. "I come from the southern Swedish countryside where I always dressed up at home and at school. Then I entertained my family and classmates with self-devised stories and plays.
During my difficult and lonely adolescence, acting increasingly became an escape from worries and stress. By cutting myself off from reality and creating my own fantasy world, I was able to escape the difficult and dark sides of life. And the scar? I accepted that a long time ago. Not only has it made me the woman I am today, it has also become a symbol for me. A symbol of the second chance I got in my life after the accident and of the go-getter I turned out to be in the end."
Characters with frayed edges
After her debut in the Swedish soap Rederiet and her breakthrough in the tragicomedy Masjävlar, Sofia Helin is now a global star thanks to the hit series The Bridge. Decked out in genuine Saga Norén outfits (complete with leather trousers!), female fans regularly walk up to her asking for autographs and photos. "I too am still surprised by the success of the series," says the actress who herself loves watching True Detective, Homeland and the new Netflix hit Narcos. "I have no single explanation for it, it's a combination of factors. Biggest kudos goes to the writers who keep coming up with exciting, dark stories full of intriguing characters.
Viewers empathise with the protagonists because they are people with substance, layers and frayed edges, recognisable or not. And don't forget the social themes in all seasons. In series 1, we were chasing a politically engaged killer, in series 2 we were hunting an eco-terrorist. The Bridge is puzzling with depth, even in season 3."
The Bridge series 4?
Finally, whether there is life after The Bridge, we want to know. "But of course!" concludes Sofia. "In Prague, I am now on the set of the spy-thriller Berlin, der Geteilte Himmel. That's a British/German mini-series about Berlin during the Cold War in the 1970s. In it, I play an English intelligence officer who has to map the secret services on both sides of the Wall undercover. After Prague, there is thankfully nothing on the calendar for a while. Remember that shooting The Bridge 1, 2 and 3 was physically and emotionally gruelling. That is why it is important for me to get back to myself and my roots. That means good meditation, getting a massage and spending time with my family. That's what I need. Whether there will be a fourth season of The Bridge? No idea. For now, there are no new ideas ready, let alone contracts. But if the writers come up with a story about Saga Norén that has to be told, there's a good chance I'll join in again."
The Bridge season 3
In season 3 of The Bridge, Malmö once again proves to be an extremely murderous city. The corpse of a gender specialist is found in a flat under construction. With Martin Rohde in prison, Saga Norén is assigned a new, Danish colleague. But then all hell breaks loose. Saga's new 'partner-in-crime' is seriously injured by a booby trap, mother Norén drops by with bad news and... soon a second death occurs.
Ride the Bridge tour!
Fan of The Bridge? Then get in your car (preferably a Porsche 911) and drive the Bridge Tour! Head to Malmö harbour where Saga has her flat. Visit the stadium of football club Malmö FF where important denouements take place in season 2. And of course stop at panorama point Lernacken with stunning views of the series' protagonist: the Øresund Bridge. For the route, background info and tips, visit http://bit.ly/1LLgqkj
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