PHOTO: TT News Agency
Börje Salming is one of the greatest in Swedish sports history.
There was therefore great pressure when creating the series about him.
– The most important thing for me was that the family could watch it and see Börje in it, says Valter Skarsgård, who plays Börje, to Sportbibeln.
With his 16 seasons in the Toronto Maple Leafs and significance for Tre Kronor is Begin Hymn a hockey legend both inside and outside Sweden’s borders. WC silver, WC bronze, two WC golds and selected in the NHL’s All Star Team in the 76/77 season are just some of the merits.
Bengtsson: “Challenge”
To add to Börje Salming’s greatness, he had a tough journey on the road as the hockey player made his way from Salmi outside Kiruna, all the way to Toronto, the NHL and the top of the world. Viaplay chose to portray that journey, and the result was the series “Börje – The Journey of a Legend”.
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The screenwriter Martin Bengtsson admits there was some pressure to portray such a great legend and his life.
– In order to take on a series like this, you probably have to get started on that pressure a little bit, and I think I am like that. I know he meant a lot to a lot of people. That he is an icon within the sport in Sweden, and also internationally in many ways. It was a real challenge and I think it’s fun, says Bengtsson to Sportbibeln.
Skarsgård’s press
Bengtsson tells us that there are some differences, but also many similarities, with making a series like “The Journey of a Legend” and other series. The creators are in a work bubble and don’t have to think too much about the pressure.
– Then something like this comes when you have to launch it, and you notice that there is an interest. Of course, you feel a sense of nervousness or irritability, “how will it be received”. But the only thing you can do is look at yourself in the mirror and ask yourself if you have done everything you can and the best you can. I feel that I have done that, and then I just hope that people will think that it is a good story.
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Walter Skarsgård is the actor who portrays Börje in the series. He too experienced his share of pressure while filming it.
– First it was in front of Börje, but then he disappeared. He fell ill very early on and passed away during filming. At first it was that I wanted him to be happy. But when he passed away, I had to change my focus to the family, says Skarsgård.
READ MORE: The giant miss in the acclaimed TV series about Börje Salming – Hedda Stiernstedt now reveals the truth about ex-wife Margitta
He continues:
– Then the most important thing for me was that they should be able to look at it and feel that it is their father, their husband, their little brother, or whatever their relationship may be. To feel that they can see this and see Börje in that, and feel satisfied. Then what the audience thinks – people will always have different opinions, it will always be mixed, says Valter Skarsgård.
READ MORE: Unexpected criticism of the new TV series about Börje Salming after the acclaimed premiere episode: “He wasn’t so…”
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