6 of Herman Tømmeraas’ best on-screen moments

At just 17, Norwegian actor Herman Tømmeraas shot to fame when he played bad boy Christoffer Schistad in the cult TV hit show Skam. Since then, the heartthrob hasn’t exactly rested on his laurels, nabbing coveted roles in Netflix’s fantasy drama series Ragnarok, and horror flick Leave. As Tømmeraas admits in issue 11 of Vogue Scandinavia, playing the charismatic villain (which he does so well) has almost become his niche, with his roles often depicting the darker side of the human psyche – as he does once again in his forthcoming film Birthday Girl which hits Nordic cinemas this week.

Take a look at Tommeraas’ best on-screen moments so far:

Related: Skam-alumni Herman Tømmeraas on growing up: “I experienced a couple of years of everyone believing I was a douchebag”

His role in Norwegian TV series Stikk came about quite serendipitously when Tømmeraas and his mum spotted a casting call for the show in their local newspaper. Determined to get the gig, the then 13-year-old Tommeraas went into the audition (his first-ever) and left with the part. The series in question centres around Molly, played by Gabriella Bailey, a young girl with a devil-may-care attitude who is about to move in with her new foster parents. Having been in the care system for years, things don’t ever seem to quite work out for Molly, but all this changes when she moves in with loving and warm Lise and George.

And things take an even better turn when she enrols in a new school and meets charming classmate Truls (played by Tømmeraas). Smart as a whip and a skilled cello player, Tømmeraas and Molly instantly hit it off, becoming inseparable as they navigate life’s ups and downs. Emmy-nominated Stikk is about exploring one’s identity in those awkward school years; the perfect viewing for any rootless and angsty teens.

It seems that Tømmeraas can’t stop reading the paper, as at 17 he clocked another casting notice. This time, the advert displayed was for Skam, then an unknown show described as a ‘low-budget, internet series for TV channel NRK’. The now cult phenomenon followed the entangled lives of a group of rowdy Oslo teens. Tømmeraas took on the role of Christoffer Schistad, who, in the actor’s own words, is “such a douchebag character”. A notorious casanova, Schistad represents a typical stereotype of a teenager on the search for his true identity, all the while trying to impress the other boys at school.

Beyond the characters, what is unique about Skam is how the series ushers in a whole new means of telling stories. Short scenes lasting between 30 seconds and 10 minutes were posted online at a time corresponding with the fictional world. For example, if a fictional scene took place at 6am on Thursday, then it would go out to audiences at that same time. At the end of the week, the clips were put together as a whole episode. Skam went on to become a worldwide phenomenon, sparking remakes across the globe, such as Skam France, Druck, Skam Italia and Skam Austin and ever since, Tømmeraas’ life was changed quite dramatically.

Related: The cast of Skam: Where are they now?

Shortly after the last season of Skam had aired, Tømmeraas appeared in another Norwegian TV show, Semester. The coming-of-age series follows adolescent boy Erling (Tømmeraas), who returns to Oslo after having dropped out of school and having spent the last eight months galavanting around Paris. However, things have changed in Erling’s hometown since he left, and he returns to a changed community, and a flurry of conflicts with friends and family. The show sees Erling tackling a rollercoaster of emotions as he tries to walk the difficult path between being a teenager and becoming an adult.

Created by Ulrik Imtiaz Rolfsen and Alexander Johansson, the show has been lauded for its authenticity and its candid exploration of love, friendship, family and youth.

Tømmeraas’ first major production arrived in 2020 when he was cast in Netflix’s fantasy drama Ragnarok. The hit show draws inspiration from the ancient Norse mythology of Ragnarök, the legendary battle between gods and giants, but brings it bang up to date for a modern audience. In Ragnarok, the giants have disguised themselves as one of Norway’s wealthiest and most powerful families in an attempt to demolish humanity. With melting glaciers, rising temperatures and pollution engulfing the local town, the show touches on crucial contemporary issues, such as climate change.

Tømmeraas snatched the lead role in Ragnarok, posing as Fjor, the teenage son of the evil giant family. Although he portrays a menacing supernatural being, at its heart the series is really a coming of age story that includes the usual elements of teen drama, such as finding yourself, falling in love for the first time and testing your boundaries. Tømmeraas’ part in the series has gained the actor substantial international acclaim, setting him up for bigger future projects.

Related: A virtual date with Scandinavia's favourite boyfriend: Herman Tømmeraas

Tømmeraas got another chance to put his ‘bad boy’ acting skills to the test when he was cast as one of the lead characters, Stian Norheim, in the American-Norwegian horror film Leave. The thriller centres around Hunter White (played by Alicia von Rittberg), a young woman who attempts to trace back her family roots after being abandoned at a cemetery as a baby. As she gets closer to the truth, a malicious spirit emerges and tries to get her to halt her search. Tømmeraas’ character, a handsome yet ignorant young man, comes into the picture when Hunter’s quest leads her to Norway to her potential long lost family, which Norheim is part of. However, it’s far from a sweet reunion, as the family turns out to be almost as wicked as the spirit chasing her.

In his most recent venture, the Norwegian spine-chilling flick Nightmare, Tømmeraas plays Robbie, one half of a young couple (his on-screen girlfriend, Mona, is played by Eili Harboe) who have just found their dream apartment and moved in together. But the couple’s idyllic life soon takes a horrifying turn as Mona starts having nightmares of her outwardly loving boyfriend, who appears in her dreams as violent and controlling. When Mona wakes, she finds her body covered with bruises. As her night terrors intensify, the couple start having problems in their relationship, leaving Mona unsure about what is really going on. At the same time, Robbie desperately tries to save their relationship, but it may be too late…