Happy Birthday! Alexander Skarsgard Turns 40 Years Old

Today is Alexander Skarsgård's birthday.

Skarsgård is best known for his time on HBO's popular vampire series True Blood. As Eric Northman, Skarsgård was a starring cast member and headlining character.

Skarsgård became a Hollywood "name" with 2001's Zoolander, and earlier this year returned to that franchise for Zoolander No. 2. He played Sgt. Brad 'Iceman' Colbert in Generation Kill before True Blood, and during that show's long run appeared in things like Battleship, Trust Me, and The Giver.

In 2003, his work in Hundtricket (The Dog Trick) earned him an Guldbagge Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor in his native Sweden. He was named the Sexiest Man in Sweden five times. He also, along with a number of injured soldiers, actor Dominic West and Prince Harry of the U.K., trekked to the South Pole in 2013 to benefit Walking With The Wounded.

Skarsgård's other notable roles include Straw Dogs, What Maisie Knew, and this year's The Diary of a Teenage Girl. This year he finds himself anchoring his first big-budget tentpole as Tarzan in Warner Bros.' high-budget Tarzan remake opposite Suicide Squad actress Margot Robbie as Jane and DC's Legends of Tomorrow villain Casper Crump as Major Kerckhover.

Next year, Skarsgård will appear in the World War II drama The Aftermath as well as in the TV series Big Little Lies alongside Laura Dern, Adam Scott, and Nicole Kidman.

Born in Stockholm, Sweden, Skarsgård turns 40 today. Happy Birthday, Alexander Skarsgård.