Mads Mikkelsen was born on November 22, 1965, in the Østerbro district of Copenhagen, Denmark, as the second son of nurse Bente Christiansen and taxi driver Henning Mikkelsen. His older brother, Lars Mikkelsen (b. 1964), is also a well-known actor. Mikkelsen spent his childhood and youth in Nørrebro. In his early years, he trained in athletics and gymnastics, and later studied ballet at a dance academy in Gothenburg, Sweden.

In 1996, Mads Mikkelsen enrolled at the Århus Theatre School with the aim of becoming an actor. He gained national recognition in Denmark by portraying the drug dealer Tonny in the first two installments (1996 and 2004) of Nicolas Winding Refn’s crime-thriller trilogy Pusher. His performance in the second film earned him the Bodil Award, Robert Award, and Zulu Award for Best Actor.

In 2004, he appeared in King Arthur, written by David Franzoni, alongside Clive Owen, Ioan Gruffudd, Joel Edgerton, Hugh Dancy, Ray Winstone, Ray Stevenson, and Keira Knightley. His international career continued to grow steadily with roles in both European and Hollywood productions.

In 2006, Mads Mikkelsen starred in the twenty-first James Bond film Casino Royale, written by Ian Fleming, alongside Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Judi Dench, and Caterina Murino. He portrayed the iconic villain Le Chiffre, a financier of global terrorism, earning widespread acclaim for his chilling performance.

In 2012, he delivered one of his most celebrated performances as Lucas in the Danish film The Hunt, for which he won the Best Actor Award at the Cannes Film Festival. Until 2012, he lived in Copenhagen, but relocated to Toronto during the production of the television series Hannibal, in which he portrayed Dr. Hannibal Lecter between 2013 and 2015.

In 2015, Mads Mikkelsen appeared in Rihanna’s music video Bitch Better Have My Money. In 2016, he played the antagonist Kaecilius in Doctor Strange, starring alongside Benedict Cumberbatch, Rachel McAdams, Scott Adkins, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Tilda Swinton. The same year, he portrayed Galen Erso in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, the first standalone anthology film in the Star Wars franchise, and served as a jury member at the 69th Cannes Film Festival.

Mads Mikkelsen has been married to actress Hanne Jacobsen since December 2, 2000. The couple, who have been together since 1987, have two children: Viola Jacobsen Mikkelsen and Carl Jacobsen Mikkelsen.

Awards
2012 – 65th Cannes Film Festival – Best Actor (The Hunt)

Filmography

Actor
2019 – Polar (Duncan Vizla) (Feature Film)
2019 – Chaos Walking (Mayor Prentiss) (Feature Film)
2018 – At Eternity's Gate (Priest) (Feature Film)
2018 – Arctic (Overgård) (Feature Film)
2016 – Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (Galen Erso) (Feature Film)
2016 – Doctor Strange (Kaecilius) (Feature Film)
2015 – Men & Chicken (Elias) (Feature Film)
2014 – The Salvation (John) (Feature Film)
2013–2015 – Hannibal (Dr. Hannibal Lecter) (TV Series)
2013 – The Necessary Death of Charlie Countryman (Nigel) (Feature Film)
2013 – Michael Kohlhaas (Michael Kohlhaas) (Feature Film)
2013 – The Stolen (Kristian) (Feature Film)
2012 – A Royal Affair (Johann Friedrich Struensee) (Feature Film)
2012 – War Below Zero (Feature Film)
2012 – The Hunt (Lucas) (Feature Film)
2012 – Move On (Mr. Flemming) (Feature Film)
2011 – The Three Musketeers (Rochefort) (Feature Film)
2011 – Poker Face (Himself) (TV Series)
2010 – Clash of the Titans (Draco) (Feature Film)
2009 – The Door (David Andernach) (Feature Film)
2009 – Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky (Igor Stravinsky) (Feature Film)
2009 – Valhalla Rising (One-Eye) (Feature Film)
2008 – Flame & Citron (Citronen) (Feature Film)
2006 – Exit (Thomas Skepphult) (Feature Film)
2006 – Prague (Christoffer) (Feature Film)
2006 – After the Wedding (Jacob Pedersen) (Feature Film)
2006 – Casino Royale (Le Chiffre) (Feature Film)
2005 – Julie (Harald) (TV Series)
2005 – Adam’s Apples (Ivan) (Feature Film)
2004 – King Arthur (Tristan) (Feature Film)
2004 – Pusher II (Tonny) (Feature Film)
2003 – The Green Butchers (Svend) (Feature Film)
2003 – The Great Director (Magnus) (Feature Film)
2003 – The Boy Below (Father) (Short Film)
2003 – Nu (Young Jakob) (Short Film)
2002 – Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself (Horst) (Feature Film)
2002 – Open Hearts (Niels) (Feature Film)
2002 – Dina (Niels) (Feature Film)
2001 – Shake It All About (Jacob) (Feature Film)
2001 – Monas verden (Casper) (Feature Film)
2000–2004 – Unit One (Allan Fischer) (TV Series)
2000 – Blinking Lights (Arne) (Feature Film)
1999 – Bleeder (Lenny) (Feature Film)
1999 – Tom Merritt (Tom Merritt) (Short Film)
1998 – Nightwatch (Ronnie) (Feature Film)
1998 – Vildspor (Jimmy) (Feature Film)
1996 – Pusher (Tonny) (Feature Film)
1996 – Café Hector (Anders) (Short Film)
1996 – Blomsterfangen (Max) (Short Film)

Source: Biyografiler.com