Whenever I hear about a new Bill Skarsgård movie, I automatically assume that he’s going to be playing some kind of heinous monster, thanks to his outstanding performances in the likes of IT and Nosferatu. I recently checked out Locked, Skarsgård’s 2025 movie about a guy trying to survive after getting trapped in a luxury car he tried to burglarize, and it was honestly one of the most refreshing experiences I’ve had all year, at least with my Hulu subscription.
After growing accustomed to Skarsgård being terrifying on screen – even his performances in non-horror movies like John Wick: Chapter 4 are unsettling – I had so much fun watching him play a different type of character, one that’s being tormented instead of being the tormentor. Let me explain…
Don't Get Me Wrong, Few Play A Villain As Great As Bill Skarsgård
Few living actors can play a villain better than Bill Skarsgård, and he’s proven that time and time again over the past decade. I mean, his take on Pennywise the Clown in Andy Muschietti’s IT movies still sends a shiver down my spine, and his reinvention of Count Orlok in Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is one of the most unsettling and grotesque movie creatures I’ve ever seen. He loses himself in his roles, and more times than not, he’s not playing normal guys but instead ancient evils vying to bring an end to the natural order.
It's Just That It Was Fun Seeing Him Play A Seemingly Normal Guy For A Change
I’m fully aware of the fact that Bill Skarsgård has played non-supernatural characters over the years, but those roles are few and far between. That said, it was so much fun watching him play a seemingly normal guy who, instead of toying with people, was the one on the receiving end of a deranged madman. Sure, it took some getting used to in the early goings of Locked, but watching his character, Eddie Barrish, try to get out of his predicament was honestly refreshing.
This isn’t to say that I think Skarsgård should turn his back on horror or fantasy films moving forward (I can’t wait for It: Welcome to Derry to hit the 2025 TV schedule), but I can’t sit here and act like watching him play a grounded and sympathetic character wasn’t a nice change of pace.
Plus, Locked Gave The World Another Terrifying Anthony Hopkins Character
Another thing I really liked about Bill Skarsgård playing the protagonist in Locked was that it gave us another opportunity to experience a terrifying and unnerving Anthony Hopkins performance. The Academy Award-winning actor, who has been going strong since the 1960s, is on a whole other level with his portrayal of William, the man who owns the heavily fortified and surveilled luxury car that essentially becomes Eddie Barrish’s prison.
Hopkins’ performance is largely just his voice, save for the film’s final act, and that adds a whole other layer of mystery and terror to the part. The way this disembodied voice toys, pokes, and prods the would-be criminal is outrageous yet never becomes campy or too much. It’s just the perfect level of sinister.
With Bill Skarsgård set to appear in movies like Dead Man’s Wire, Emperor, and The Death of Robin Hood, it’s going to be interesting to see where his career goes these next few years.
