Sverre Anker Ousdal

Acting

Sverre Anker Ousdal

Born 1944-07-18 · Flekkefjord, Norway

Sverre Anker Ousdal (18 July 1944 – 3 January 2026) was a Norwegian actor born in Flekkefjord. His debut was in 1965 at Den Nationale Scene in Bergen. He was at the Oslo Nye Teater in the period 1967 to 1970, and at the National Theatre from 1970. In 1997 he was made a Knight First Class of the Royal Norwegian Order of St Olav for his acting work. Ousdal had a number of major roles in Norwegian and Swedish films, including Karjolsteinen (1977), Orion's Belt (1985), Falsk som vatten (1985), Etter Rubicon (1987), and Insomnia. He also appeared in US films like The Island at the Top of the World (1974) and in several British productions, most notably the serial The Last Place on Earth (1985), where he starred as polar explorer Roald Amundsen. Sverre Anker Ousdal died at the age of 81.

Acting credits

The Secret Life of Words poster
7.0

A solitary nurse bonds with a badly burned patient who survived an accident on an oil rig.

The Secret Life of Words

2005

The Greatest Gamble poster
6.3

This is a movie about a local resistance group and its leader Gunvald Tomstad, in the southern part of Norway. Gunvald takes on a heavy burden as he pretends to be a devoted Hitlerjugend-leader and soon he becomes a trusted friend of the German occupants.

The Greatest Gamble

1967

Insomnia poster
7.0

Detectives Jonas and Erik are called to the midnight sun country of northern Norway to investigate a recent homicide, but their plan to arrest the killer goes awry, and Jonas mistakenly shoots Erik. The suspect escapes, and a frightened Jonas pins Erik's death on the fugitive. Jonas continues to pursue the killer as he seeks to protect himself; however, his mounting guilt and the omnipresent sun plague him with an insomnia that affects his sanity.

Insomnia

1997

Mio in the Land of Faraway poster
6.0

Under the watch of his unkind realtives, lonely Bosse's luck is changed when he is sent to the land where his real father is the King. In that country, he sets out on a quest, together with his new friend, to destroy the evil Knight Kato.

Mio in the Land of Faraway

1987

The Veil of Twilight poster
5.5

The investigation of a mysterious serial-killer in a mountain village, set in Norway in the mid 1300s.

The Veil of Twilight

2014

Intergirl poster
6.5

A hospital nurse becomes an "international girl" — a prostitute who caters to foreigners with hard currency.

Intergirl

1989

The Olsen Gang poster
7.5

Egon Olsen is the leader of the Olsen Gang. While he was in the slammer, he planned how he would steal the fantastic golden figure Keizeroppzatsen.

The Olsen Gang

1969

The Island at the Top of the World poster
6.5

A Victorian gentleman hopes to find his long-lost son, who vanished while searching for a mysterious Viking community in a volcanic valley somewhere in uncharted Arctic regions. The gentleman puts together an expedition team to go on the search, but when they reach their destination they must escape from some Viking descendants who will kill to keep their existence a secret.

The Island at the Top of the World

1974

Asfaltevangeliet poster
8.0

The controversial story about "Jesus", placed in Oslo today. Jesus drinks, curses and attends to prostitutes, to fit in to modern life.

Asfaltevangeliet

2004

Cellophane poster
4.3

Marianne visits her dying father in the hospital who tells of a box of old letters that she must promise to destroy. Marianne chooses to do the opposite, and reads them instead. There she finds shocking accusations against her father, who allegedly murdered a young woman 25 years ago.

Cellophane

1998

Five Days in August poster
3.0

Viveca is 31, divorced, and has a son of 6 years. She and her friend Aud have left the hectic everyday life and moved in with bohemians and artists. We follow these two women for five days, as they come in contact with many different people.

Five Days in August

1973

Kristin Lavransdatter poster
5.0

The daughter of a prominent medieval Norway landowner, Kristin grows up in total harmony with the ideals of the time: strong family ties, social pride and devout Christianity. As she accepts the fact that she has been arranged to marry the son of another landowner, Kristin's beauty, innocence and purity evokes violent emotions around her: envy, lust, murder, revenge. She seeks refuge in a convent, awaiting marriage. Here, the passion of her life strikes, the knight Erlend Nikulaussonn. However, their love cannot be private, and suddenly Kristin is the centre of a scandal.

Kristin Lavransdatter

1995

The Chieftain poster
3.7

A love story about an actor, Arne Strømberg, which struggles with the changes between love and anger, and his roles as a macho man, family father and husband.

The Chieftain

1984

The Flight of the Eagle poster
7.0

The Swedish 19th century engineer Salomon August Andrée sets out to become the first man on the north pole. His idea is to launch a polar expedition using a hydrogen balloon, together with two friends. The balloon, "The Eagle", takes off from Svalbard in 1897, but the three men are never heard from again.

The Flight of the Eagle

1982

No artwork available
5.3

A New York Times correspondent based in Sweden travels to Istanbul with his daughter on a secret mission.

Istanbul

1989

North Star poster
4.8

Set during the Alaskan gold rush of the late 1800s. In his efforts to gain control of a small mining town, Sean McLennon is buying up every claim that becomes available, usually after the deaths of the previous owners at the hands of McLennon's 'assistants'. One of the miners targeted by McLennon, a half-Indian hunter named Hudson Saanteek, manages to escape his hired thugs and comes back into town looking to re-establish his claim and get revenge. McLennon and his men have the advantage of numbers and weapons, but Saanteek has his survival skills and knowledge of the Alaskan wilderness.

North Star

1996

Credo poster
6.8

Mona is a young woman, engaged to a man who never shows up. She relies strongly on her supportive friend, Anne. Mona suspects that Anne's psychologist, Dr. Lark, is acting funny towards her friend, and decides to investigate. Mona and Anne will find themselves embroiled in a strange world of psychiatry and fanaticism, in which both young women's lives will be endangered.

Credo

1997

The Feldmann Case poster
6.8

"The Feldmann Case" - Jacob and Rachel was killed on their flight from the Nazi occupation to Sweden in 1942. A year later their bodies are discovered, but after the war the case is re-opened, and the guilty ones is game.

The Feldmann Case

1987

Beryl Markham: A Shadow on the Sun poster
6.0

The singular life of Beryl Markham - renowned aviatrix, author and adventurer

Beryl Markham: A Shadow on the Sun

1988

All at Sea poster
4.5

An anti-authority rogue in an old folks' home breaks all the rules and causes mayhem honoring his friend's dying wish to be buried at sea.

All at Sea

2012

Sweetwater poster
4.3

Allan and Lisa flee the war-torn city of Sweetwater with their young son for the safety of the municipal dump in this sleepy war drama. They join other displaced survivors who were driven from their homes, looking for a better life on the outskirts of Sweetwater.

Sweetwater

1988

The Crossing poster
6.4

Andreas has everything a man can wish for – a wonderful wife, a big house in the country, and a great job. But a sudden car accident puts him in a wheelchair, leaving him paralysed below the waste and impotent. Will his marriage work?

The Crossing

2004

Hamsun poster
6.8

Knut Hamsun is Norway's most famous and admired author. Ever since he was young he has hated the English for the starvation they caused Norway during WWI. When the Germans occupy Norway 9 April 1940 he welcomes them and the protection they can give from Great Britain. He supports the national socialist ideals, but opposes the way these ideals are turned into action - that Norwegians are jailed and executed. His wife Marie travels in Germany during the war as a sign of support from Knut and herself.

Hamsun

1996

The Last Dance poster
5.2

Blackpool, a dancing contest, a dead woman. This is the opening scene of this movie, which then continues by telling us the story preceding this sad accident - or is it a murder? We will get to know the tensed relationship of the dancing contestant couple Tove and Claes, and see how there lives are affected by Liselott and Lennart, their opponents and friends.

The Last Dance

1993