Travis Fimmel’s best performances, from ‘Vikings’ to ‘Raised by Wolves’   (2024)

IT’S HARD TO BELIEVE Travis Fimmel has never enjoyed acting. Because to watch the films and TV shows he’s starred in is to witness an actor who so clearly commits to every role; whether he’s playing a fictional warrior, an Aussie bogan or a real life army sergeant, Fimmel can’t help but shine. This is something his Danger Close: Battle of Long Tan director Kriv Stenders spoke to, when I asked him some questions about Fimmel for our September/October cover story. “Travis is cursed with a gift,” said Stenders. “The minute you put the lens on him – and it’s very rare in this business – you look through the viewfinder and get blinded. The charisma that he has is just astronomical.”

Fimmel has applied his trademark charisma to all sorts of characters, set in all sorts of worlds. The sense of humanity he brings to mythological worlds, such as Raised by Wolves, Warcraft: The Beginning and, yes, Vikings is one of his greatest strengths as an actor. But Fimmel is also great in roles with a comedic bent; in particular, in Boy Swallows Universe, where his facial expressions say just as much as his perfectly timed punch lines. The hillbilly fugitive he plays in The Baytown Outlaws, meanwhile, is perfectly unhinged.

But if we had to pick one ‘type’ of character Fimmel excels most at, that would be the flawed hero – tough but vulnerable, with a big heart and a curious mind. Scroll on to see our ranking of Fimmel’s best performances yet, and, bear in mind, with the premiere of Dune: Prophecy just around the corner, this list is only set to grow.

10. C*A*U*G*H*T, 2023

Where to watch: Stan

It’s only a small cameo, but Fimmel’s appearance in the Stan Original series C*A*U*G*H*T (a nod to M*A*S*H) is unhinged enough to deserve a mention on this list. Dressed in what appears to be a Dingo pelt, head and all, Fimmel plays some kind of recluse living in the jungle on a fictional war-torn island called Behati-Prinsloo (yes, like the supermodel). As they say, you have to see it.

9. Warcraft: The Beginning, 2016

Where to watch: Binge

In the film adaptation of the video game phenomenon, Fimmel plays Anduin Lothar, the commander of the human military in this film otherwise dominated by CGI orks. Filmed mostly against green screen backdrops, with lots of wire stunts and heavy costumes, it could have easily been a shallow action-fantasy movie with no link to real life. But as he tends to do, Fimmel breathed human emotion, ambition and humour into the film.

8. Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan, 2019

Where to watch: 7Plus

Based on the true story of 100 young Australian soldiers outnumbered by the Viet Cong while fighting for their lives in the infamous Battle of Long Tan, Fimmel plays Major Harry Smith, a real life major who led his troops into battle. “I think a lot of other actors would go, ‘Oh, here are the lines, I’ll say them . . . But Travis was interrogating every line, every moment, trying to find the truth, the authenticity,” director Kriv Stenders said. And it shines through.

7. Finding Steve McQueen, 2019

Where to watch or buy: Apple TV+, Amazon Prime

In what might be Fimmel at his suavest, here, alongside Hollywood veterans Forest Whitaker and William Fichtner, the Aussie stars as Harry Barber in a film that’s (loosely) based on the true story of a group of bank robbers out to steal the illegal funds of President Richard Nixon. Barber, as the story goes, fancied himself as a bit of a Steve McQueen type, hence the film’s title. Big shoes to fill, but Fimmel does so easily.

6. The Beast, 2009

Where to watch: Apple TV

Fimmel was one of Patrick Swayze’s last co-stars – the Ghost actor lost his life to cancer at the end of 2009, shortly after this crime drama series premiered (for obvious reasons, it only went for one season). The Beast was also one of Fimmel’s first really big roles; his portrayal of a junior undercover agent learning the ropes put him on the radar of major Hollywood casting agents.

5. Boy Swallows Universe, 2024

Where to watch: Netflix

It could be a heavy story – based on Australian author Trent Dalton’s bestselling novel of the same name, Boy Swallows Universe follows a young schoolboy and his mute brother as they come of age around drug dealers and small-time crims in suburban Brisbane. But Fimmel’s comedic timing and ocker charm lightens the mood at all the right times. He plays the young boys’ stepdad, Lyle, a total bogan who loves the kids yet, in an attempt to create a better life for them, brings them into some pretty touch-and-go scenarios. If you haven’t already watched the Aussie Netflix Original, please, do yourself a favour.

Related:

Inside the sprawling, spellbinding, suburban world of Boy Swallows Universe

Lee Tiger Halley is one to watch

4. The Baytown Outlaws, 2012

Where to watch: Buy or rent on Amazon Prime and Apple TV+

Not only does Fimmel play a good bogan; he also does a very, very good hillbilly. In The Baytown Outlaws, he plays one of three brothers who, after trying to help a woman save her godson from an abusive stepfather, are forced to go on the run when they become targets themselves. Billy Bob Thornton and Eva Longoria also star, but Fimmel’s wisecracking McQueen Oodie gives this film its spark.

3. Vikings, 2013-2017

Where to watch: Netflix

Well . . . of course! In the words of series creator Michael Hirst, “Travis was one big reason why the show grew as big as it did. He was our lead. He was our poster boy. He was our signature. He redefined for a modern audience what a viking was. He smashed the old clichés forever.”

Some of Fimmel’s fans will argue his performance as Ragnar Lothbrok should be number one on this list. After all, it’s the role he’s most well-known for. Yes, he’s fantastic – season after season (Fimmel departed the show after 45 episodes, at the conclusion of its fourth season), his thoughtful, heroic yet flawed Ragnar unraveled all of the time-worn viking cliches. We all know he’s unparalleled in this. But how about those under the radar performances?

2. Black Snow, 2022 – present

Where to watch: Stan

Fimmel is a big supporter of Australian productions, and the way he carries murder mystery series Black Snow is a testament to this. Alongside a cast of impressive first-time actors, many of whom belong to the Australian South Sea Islander community, Fimmel stars as a detective whose motivation to solve the disappearance of a young First Nations girl is partly driven by the loss of his own brother. It’s Aussie TV at its – and Fimmel at his – finest.

1. Raised by Wolves, 2020 – 2022

Where to watch: Binge

It was a shock when this Sci-Fi epic wasn’t renewed for a third season, because it was so critically acclaimed. Executive produced by Ridley Scott (who also directed the first two episodes), it’s Fimmel’s most intriguing performance – in a religious dystopia that revolves around two androids, Mother and Father, he plays an atheist soldier who undergoes numerous identity changes in order to survive and keep his family alive. Again, the world this show is set in is far from reality, yet the intellect, emotion and depth Fimmel brings to his character Marcus (born Caleb) is truly profound to watch. If you haven’t already, do yourself a favour and tune in.

Does Travis Fimmel have blue eyes?

Yes, that piercing blue gaze is real – no contact lenses necessary. According to the creator of Vikings Michael Hirst, Fimmel’s eyes were one of the reasons he landed the role of Ragnar Lothbrok. “His eyes were very compelling and both [co-creator] Johan [Renck] and I felt he had screen presence, so we insisted it was Travis or nothing . . . it was also true that I had come to realise how much – of meaning and emotion – Travis could convey simply by ‘looking’. This is a gift which very good actors always have.”

Is Ragnar Lothbrok Australian?

While Ragnar Lothbrok, the character, is a Danish viking warrior, the actor who plays him (Travis Fimmel) is most certainly Australian. To be exact, Fimmel grew up on a dairy farm in the small town of Lockington just outside of Echuca in Victoria. It’s not hard to see where the actor gets his Aussie values from.

Did Travis Fimmel do his own stunts in Vikings?

While Fimmel did indeed do a lot of the combat scenes in Vikings, he did have the help of a stuntman for some of the more dangerous moves. “I don’t love the action stuff at all, I’m lazy,” he admits. “I don’t need to be a hero. I’m happy for the stunt guys to get paid do their thing,” he told People magazine about the show in 2020.

Related:

Travis Fimmel isn’t your typical movie star

What we’re streaming this August