Kristofer Hivju (; born 7 December 1978) is a Norwegian actor. He is most notable for playing the role of Tormund Giantsbane in Game of Thrones (2013-2019).
His other credits include Manhunt (2008), The Thing (2011), After Earth (2013), Force Majeure (2014), The Fate of the Furious (2017), Twin, Downhill (2020), The Witcher (2021), The Gentlemen (2024), Twilight of the Gods (2024) (voice), The Iris Affair (2025) and In the Grey (2026).
Early life Hivju was born in Oslo, Norway. He graduated from the Danish subdivision of the Russian Academy of Theatre Arts (GITIS) in 2004.
Career He began of his career and starred in the television series, such as Fox Grønland and Seks som oss, in the avalanche drama film Manhunt (2008), and plays at the Grusomhetens Teater and Trøndelag Teater, as well as written scripts for the short films Closework (2005), and Flax (2008).
In several instances, he portrays Viking King Olav II in Norwegian-produced documentary film Olav, and also appeared in From Hate to Hope. He starred in the remake of the science fiction classic The Thing (2011).
From 2013, Hivju played the role of Wildling Tormund Giantsbane in 33 episodes of the HBO fantasy series Game of Thrones (2013-2019). His first appearance was in the first episode of the third season, "Valar Dohaeris". In 2013, he also appeared in M. Night Shyamalan's science fiction film After Earth (2013).
Hivju appearred in the movie Force Majeure (2014), and starred as Connor Rhodes in the film The Fate of the Furious (2017).
In 2019, he played a double role as Erik and Adam in the Norwegian television crime drama series Twin, and followed up starring in the skiing remake film Downhill (2020). In 2021 he starred as Nivellen, alongside Henry Cavill in a single episode of The Witcher (2021).
In 2023, he began appearing in a series of commercials for Scotts brand products as Scott the Scottsman, pushing the product and encouraging homeowners to keep their lawn green. He played Florian de Groot in two episodes of Guy Ritchie's The Gentlemen (2024), and the same year was the voice of Andvari in Twilight of the Gods (2024).
In 2025, he starred as Jensen Lind, alongside Niamh Algar and Tom Hollander in the Sky Atlantic thriller series The Iris Affair (2025).
Personal life Hivju is the son of Norwegian actors Erik Hivju and Lieselotte Holmene and is the cousin of French actress Isabelle Nanty. He is married to Gry Molvær Hivju. Together they have two daughters, Noor (born in 2007) and Sylja (born in 2008).
Filmography Film Year Title Role Director(s) Notes 2008 Manhunt Man 2 / Man in Café Patrik Syversen 2011 The Thing Jonas Matthijs van Heijningen, Jr. 2013 After Earth Security Chief M. Night Shyamalan 2014 In Order of Disappearance Stig Erik "Strike" Smith Hans Petter Moland Force Majeure Mats Ruben Östlund Operation Arctic Fangstmann Grethe Bøe-Waal Mariken Halle 2015 The Wendy Effect Percy Ole Endresen 2016 The Last King Torstein Skevla Nils Gaup 2017 The Fate of the Furious Connor Rhodes F. Gary Gray 2020 Downhill Michel Nat FaxonJim Rash 2021 Three Wishes for Cinderella Hestepasseren Cecilie Mosli 2023 Cocaine Bear Olaf Kristoffer Elizabeth Banks Last Ride Øyvind Cinqué Lee 2024 Long Distance Dwayne Will SpeckJosh Gordon Red One Krampus Jake Kasdan 2025 Afterburn General Volkov J.J. Perry2026 In the Grey Axel Oloffson Guy Ritchie
Television Year Title Role Notes 2001 Fox Grønland Jim Olsen 2 episodes 2006 Melonas TBA 2007 Six Like Us Bar Customer 1 episode Largest of All Ben 6 episodes 2013 The Games Expert Commentator 1 episode 2013–2019 Game of Thrones Tormund Giantsbane 33 episodes 2014 Lilyhammer Tormod 1 episode 2016–present Beck Steinar Hovland 13 episodes 2017 The Lion Guard Kenge (voice) 1 episode 2019 Twin Adam & Erik 8 episodes 2020 DuckTales Jormungandr (voice) 1 episode 2021 The Witcher Nivellen Episode: "A Grain of Truth" 2024 The Gentlemen Florian de Groot 2 episodes Twilight of the Gods Andvari (voice) 6 episodes 2025 The Iris Affair Jensen Lind 4 episodes
Shorts and documentaries Year Title Role Director Notes 2005 Closework Pleieren (Nurse/Hygienist) Kristoffer MetcalfeShort 2007 Kilolirakis N/A N/A 2008 En perfekt dag for golf Gudmund the Paramedic Eric Magnusson English title: A Perfect Day for GolfShort Scratch Torpedo Bård Ivar Engelsås English title: FlaxWriting CreditShort 2011 Min Siste Bull Victim Onur GencShort Din Tur Eik Vegard Dahle English title: Your TurnShort Olav Olaf II of Norway N/A Documentary 2013 Haikeren Torgeir Anders TeigShort 2014 Its OK The Hipster Kristoffer Metcalfe TBA TWIN The TwinTBAOlavHimselfN/ADocumentary TV series
References
External links
Kristofer Hivju at Filmweb.no