Pilou Asbæk is up there as one of the most recognisable faces from Denmark when it comes to film and television. His work in both Hollywood and the Nordics has propelled him to be a household name with a wide variety of performances under his belt.

You may recognise him as Euron Greyjoy from Game of Thrones, or spotted him in one of many Hollywood roles in films such as Ghost in the Shell, Samaritan, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, and most recently the Stephen King adaptation of Salem’s Lot.

It would come as no surprise that we have followed his Danish work, where you would discover a whole different side to the actor. Roles in such series’ as the incredible The Investigation, Borgen of course, and films such as A Hijacking and A War.

As he speaks to Nordic Watchlist over video call from his garden, I asked him what it had been like working back in Denmark, and on a show which is very different to some of the high-profile roles he had become used to.

“It felt like coming home,” he says, and he doesn’t just mean physically. It was like coming home to what he loves most, the real essence of acting: “Don’t get me wrong, I love those Hollywood roles – they helped pay for this,” he says gesturing towards his home and garden. “But this role…it’s closer to what I did in Borgen. It’s what I really love, and that’s roles based in reality and art imitating real life.”

And that real life he’s imitating in Secrets is that of Mads, a music teacher, father, husband and brother to Eva, played by Iben Hjejle. He’s also a drug addict. Although a functioning addict, the secrets, manipulation and deception that come with addiction slowly start to destroy all areas of his life.

It’s a role he plays exceptionally well, you can tell it’s the type of show and character he loves to get stuck into. “You can’t play a role like this without some knowledge and understanding of addiction. The darkness and selfishness that comes from it.” Similar to myself, we don’t have first-hand experience of being a destructive addict, but we both have people in our lives who we know struggled, and that helped him understand this character.

In Borgen we saw Pilou play the loveable rogue Kasper Juul (criminally left out of the fourth season), and in The Investigation he’s a stern, straight-up attorney not taking any risks in the Kim Wall case. In Secrets, he almost amalgamates his villainous characters with those of his Danish ones when it comes to creating Mads, a character just as endearing and charming as he is infuriating. That can often be the case with addicts; they use their charm and knowledge to get what they want, often exchanging others’ secrets for money to get their next fix. This usually happens to those closest to them and the effects ripple outwards until “everyone in the family is involved in that person’s journey,” as Pilou puts it.

Pilou even stayed in character between scenes, to ensure he channelled the energy, body language and look needed to portray such a rebellious, destructive and volatile character, “it was very intense to shoot,” he reminisces. This was much to the dismay and frustration of his long-time friend Iben Hjejle, who is much more structured and organised in her approach. “Poor Iben, I was horrible to work with on this series, but we are still friends,” he says with a smile. The two work well on screen together as siblings and perhaps the long friendship helped with this chemistry.

Pilou’s knowledge of addiction, combined with staying in character and getting back to the essence of what he loves about acting, has created a sublime and rawly realistic performance that he is really proud of, and we certainly enjoyed watching.

What’s next for Pilou? He’s been working on a Danish horror filmed in the Faroe Islands called No Rest for the Wicked, where he plays a supporting role and is extremely excited about it. He describes some of the trials and tribulations of filming in the remote and weather-battered Faroe Islands, but also the stunning beauty the islands offer and has been captured in the film.

“I’ve got a few things coming up, but mostly I just want to work with people who make me better, as both an actor and as a human being – and those two don’t always come together.”

Secrets is out on Viaplay UK today and then Viaplay USA from the 24th October.