Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, whose full name is Inga Josefine Ibsdotter Lilleaas, was born on April 9, 1989, in Gol, Buskerud, Norway. She is a Norwegian actress who works in film, television and theatre. She gained international recognition for portraying Agnes Borg Pettersen in Joachim Trier's 2025 film Sentimental Value, alongside Renate Reinsve, Stellan Skarsgard and Elle Fanning. Her performance earned her the National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actress and nominations for the Academy Awards, Golden Globe Awards and BAFTA Film Awards. Her earlier screen credits include Women in Oversized Men's Shirts, The Last King, Going West, Betrayed and A Beautiful Life.

Early Life and Family Background

Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas grew up in Gol, a municipality in Norway's Buskerud region. Her family operated a business that rented costumes, theatrical equipment and other materials to amateur stage productions. Through this family environment, she became familiar with theatre and performance from an early age.

During high school, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas spent a period in Brazil as an exchange student. She learned Portuguese while living there, later listing the language among those she speaks fluently.

After returning to Norway, she pursued formal acting training at Nord University, formerly Nord-Trøndelag University College, where she studied acting and theatre production. She also spent a semester at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute in New York City, studying acting techniques associated with the American theatre and film industry.

Early Acting Career

Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas began working professionally in Norwegian television and theatre before making her feature-film debut. Her early television appearances included Shit Happens in 2012 and Neste Sommer in 2014.

In 2014, she portrayed Tonje, the central character in a stage adaptation of Tonje Glimmerdal, based on the children's novel by Norwegian writer Maria Parr. The production was staged by Nord-Trøndelag Theatre.

Her first leading role in a feature film came in 2015 with Women in Oversized Men's Shirts, originally titled Kvinner i for store herreskjorter. Directed by Yngvild Sve Flikke, the film was adapted from Gunnhild Øyehaug's novel Wait, Blink.

Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas played Sigrid Auge, a young woman navigating personal relationships and questions about her future. The cast included Henriette Steenstrup and Anne Krigsvoll. Her performance earned her a nomination for Best Actress at the 2015 Amanda Awards, Norway's national film awards.

Film and Television Career

In 2016, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas appeared in The Last King, originally titled Birkebeinerne, a Norwegian historical adventure directed by Nils Gaup. Set during the Norwegian civil wars of the early thirteenth century, the film starred Jakob Oftebro and Kristofer Hivju. Lilleaas portrayed Ylva.

She continued her film career with Going West (2017), also known by its Norwegian title Rett Vest. Directed by Henrik Martin Dahlsbakken, the film featured Lilleaas as Lotte.

Her television work included the Norwegian drama Young and Promising, in which she played Sara, and the 2018 series Rekyl, where she portrayed Erica Fischer. She also appeared in It Could Have Been Worse in 2018.

In 2020, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas played Amalie Laksov in Betrayed, known in Norwegian as Den største forbrytelsen. Directed by Eirik Svensson, the historical drama depicts the persecution and deportation of Norwegian Jews during the German occupation of Norway in the Second World War.

She appeared as Turid in the 2021 television series Julestjerna. In 2023, she played Lilly in the Danish romantic musical drama A Beautiful Life, directed by Mehdi Avaz and starring Christopher Lund Nissen as an aspiring singer whose career changes after his musical abilities are discovered.

The same year, she appeared as Director Lena in the film Offline.

Theatre Career

Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas has continued working on stage alongside her film and television roles. Her theatre credits include both contemporary productions and adaptations of established literary works.

In 2017, she performed in the Norwegian premiere of A Girl Is a Half-formed Thing, a stage adaptation of the novel by Irish author Eimear McBride. The production was directed by Trond Lie at Akershus Theatre.

In 2019, she played Hermia in A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare, staged at Haugesund Theatre. Her husband, actor Gunnar Eiriksson, appeared in the same production as Lysander.

She later portrayed Madame de Tourvel in Les Liaisons dangereuses, also known as Dangerous Liaisons, in a production directed by Terje Skonseng Naudeer at Nordland Theatre.

In 2023, she played Tamora in William Shakespeare's tragedy Titus Andronicus at Nordland Theatre.

International Breakthrough with Sentimental Value

In 2025, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas appeared in Sentimental Value, originally titled Affeksjonsverdi, a Norwegian family drama directed by Joachim Trier and written by Trier and Eskil Vogt. The film brought her international recognition after years of work in Scandinavian cinema and theatre.

She portrayed Agnes Borg Pettersen, the younger daughter of filmmaker Gustav Borg, played by Stellan Skarsgard, and the sister of Nora Borg, played by Renate Reinsve. Elle Fanning appeared as Rachel Kemp, an American actress recruited for Gustav's new film project.

The story follows a family dealing with long-standing emotional tensions when Gustav, an established film director, returns to his daughters' lives and proposes making a film in their childhood home. Agnes attempts to maintain relationships within the family while navigating conflicts between her father and sister.

Sentimental Value premiered in competition at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, where it received the Grand Prix, the festival's second-highest competitive award. The film subsequently received international theatrical distribution, including a United States release through Neon.

Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas's performance as Agnes earned nominations from major film award organizations. She became the first Norwegian actress nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. The film also received nominations for Best Picture, Best Director, Best International Feature Film and several acting categories at the 98th Academy Awards.

Awards and International Recognition

For her performance in Sentimental Value, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas received the National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actress. She also received recognition from film critics' organizations and festivals, including the Savannah Film Festival.

At the 83rd Golden Globe Awards in January 2026, she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture. Fellow cast members Elle Fanning, Renate Reinsve and Stellan Skarsgard also received acting nominations. Skarsgård won the award for Best Supporting Actor.

In February 2026, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas attended the BAFTA Film Awards as a nominee for Best Supporting Actress. The award went to Wunmi Mosaku for Sinners. Sentimental Value won the BAFTA Award for Film Not in the English Language.

At the 98th Academy Awards on March 15, 2026, she competed for Best Supporting Actress alongside Elle Fanning, Wunmi Mosaku, Teyana Taylor and Amy Madigan. The award was presented to Amy Madigan for Weapons.

Her Academy Award nomination followed her earlier recognition in Norway, including the Amanda Award nomination for Women in Oversized Men's Shirts in 2015.

Later Projects

Following Sentimental Value, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas joined Small Talk, a film directed by Even Hafnor, in which she portrays Elisabeth. The production is listed among her upcoming screen credits.

She has also been associated with projects titled Zero K and The Outsider.

Personal Life

Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas is married to Norwegian actor Gunnar Eiriksson. The couple married in 2023 and have one son. Both have worked in Norwegian theatre, including their shared appearance in the 2019 production of A Midsummer Night's Dream at Haugesund Theatre.

Filmography

2027 – Small Talk – Elisabeth – Feature Film
2025 – Sentimental Value – Agnes Borg Pettersen – Feature Film
2023 – A Beautiful Life – Lilly – Feature Film
2023 – Offline – Director Lena – Feature Film
2021 – Julestjerna – Turid – TV Series
2020 – Betrayed – Amalie Laksov – Feature Film
2018 – Rekyl – Erica Fischer – TV Series
2018 – It Could Have Been Worse – Theo's Mother – Film
2017 – Going West – Lotte – Feature Film
2016 – The Last King – Ylva – Feature Film
2015 – Young and Promising – Sara – TV Series
2015 – Women in Oversized Men's Shirts – Sigrid Auge – Feature Film
2014 – Neste Sommer – Kajsa – TV Series
2012 – Shit Happens – Annika – TV Series

Theatre Performances

2023 – Titus Andronicus – Tamora – Nordland Theatre
2021 – Les Liaisons dangereuses – Madame de Tourvel – Nordland Theatre
2019 – A Midsummer Night's Dream – Hermia – Haugesund Theatre
2017 – A Girl Is a Half-formed Thing – Solo Performance – Akershus Theatre
2014 – Tonje Glimmerdal – Tonje – Nord-Trøndelag Theatre

Awards and Nominations

2026 – Academy Awards – Best Supporting Actress – Sentimental Value – Nominated
2026 – BAFTA Film Awards – Best Supporting Actress – Sentimental Value – Nominated
2026 – Golden Globe Awards – Best Supporting Actress, Motion Picture – Sentimental Value – Nominated
2026 – Critics Choice Awards – Best Supporting Actress – Sentimental Value – Nominated
2025 – National Board of Review Awards – Best Supporting Actress – Sentimental Value – Won
2025 – Savannah Film Festival – Discovery Award – Sentimental Value – Honored
2015 – Amanda Awards – Best Actress – Women in Oversized Men's Shirts – Nominated

Source: Biyografiler.com