Alexander Skarsgård Had No Idea Who Lady Gaga Was When He Starred in Her Music Video for ‘Paparazzi’
Alexander Skarsgård had no idea who Lady Gaga was when he starred in her music video for “Paparazzi.” It’s hard to imagine a world where the singer isn’t famous. However, that’s when the True Blood actor met her. She was just starting to take the music industry by storm.
Alexander Skarsgård didn’t know who Lady Gaga was when he starred in the music video for ‘Paparazzi’
Lady Gaga entered the music industry with her 2008 debut album, The Fame. The album had hits, “Paparazzi,” “Just Dance,” “Poker Face,” and “LoveGame.”
Swedish actor, Alexander Skarsgård, appeared in the music video for “Paparazzi.” He played Lady Gaga’s boyfriend, who viciously throws her off a balcony. She poisons him to death at the end.
Since the singer was hardly famous yet, the actor had no idea who she was. He hadn’t yet reached fame himself. He’d just started filming True Blood. He played Eric Northman.
“I actually didn’t know who she was when I got asked to do the video!” Skarsgård told Stellar Magazine (per Daily Mail). “My buddy who directed it told me about [it], and said, ‘It’s a love story, but it’s definitely not you walking down the beach holding hands.’
“I had a great time on set with her – she’s fun to be around and incredibly talented.”
The director had to convince Skarsgård to work with Lady Gaga on the ‘Paparazzi’ video
During an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Skarsgård explained that the music video’s director had to do a little convincing to get him to accept the role.
“I was in LA shooting one of my first jobs which was season one of ‘True Blood,'” Skarsgård explained to Fallon. “But it was the very beginning, so the show hadn’t aired yet. And my friend, Jonas Akerlund, a Swedish guy, he’s a director, and he was gonna direct the music video.
“He called me and asked me if I wanted to play the boyfriend. I said, ‘Boyfriend?’ I didn’t know who the girl was, Lady Goo Goo, I think it was her first album, I’m not sure, but I didn’t know who she was, I said, ‘Well, what are we doing, like walking down the beach, holding hands?’
“He’s like, ‘No, hear me out. You wear an eye patch, and you throw her off. The plot is you try to kill her. You throw her off a balcony of a beautiful mansion in Malibu. She doesn’t die. She comes back, and she poisons you. I said, ‘That’s a beautiful, beautiful story.'”
Fallon pointed out to Skarsgård that Lady Gaga’s music video for “Paparazzi” has reached over 200 million views. “I’m a very popular guy, yeah,” the actor joked.
The actor revealed whether the singer is a good kisser
Skarsgård spoke about the juiciest details about his experience starring in Lady Gaga’s music video for “Paparazzi” during an appearance on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen.
First, Cohen asked if the singer was a good kisser and if she used her tongue while kissing him. The actor said yes to both questions. Cohen then asked if he reciprocated with his tongue. He said yes.
Then, the host asked Skarsgård what it felt like to throw Lady Gaga off a balcony. “Great,” he responded. “Did you keep your weird eyepatch?” Cohen asked. “Yes,” Skarsgård replied.
The Northman actor continued to say that Lady Gaga’s acting was “incredible” and added that they spoke Swedish to each other at the beginning of the video. Although, in the YouTube audio captions, it says they speak French.
Skarsgård added that his death in the music video was lame because he just slumped over. He tried to convince Akerlund to give him a “more glamorous” death.
Although the pair had a steamy kiss, Skarsgård revealed there was no sexual tension between him and Lady Gaga in the making of the video for “Paparazzi.”
Now Skarsgård and Lady Gaga are international stars in their respective fields. Looking at what they’ve both achieved since “Paparazzi” is inspiring to say the least.
