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Actor

Alice E. Bier Zandén

2 films on Movie OTT

Alice Esther Bier Zandén — born September 26, 1995 — isn't exactly a name that needs a lengthy introduction if you know anything about Scandinavian cinema. The daughter of Oscar-winning director Susanne Bier and Swedish actor Philip Zandén, she grew up inside one of the most creatively charged family environments you can imagine (her aunt is actress Jessica Zandén, so the talent clearly runs deep on both sides). That's a lot of expectation to carry, and yet she doesn't seem weighed down by it.

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About Alice E. Bier Zandén

Alice Esther Bier Zandén — born September 26, 1995 — isn't exactly a name that needs a lengthy introduction if you know anything about Scandinavian cinema. The daughter of Oscar-winning director Susanne Bier and Swedish actor Philip Zandén, she grew up inside one of the most creatively charged family environments you can imagine (her aunt is actress Jessica Zandén, so the talent clearly runs deep on both sides). That's a lot of expectation to carry, and yet she doesn't seem weighed down by it.

Her breakout came with Bille August's 2023 Netflix film *Ehrengard: The Art of Seduction*, where she took the title role — a part that came with one genuinely remarkable detail: the costumes were designed by Queen Margrethe II of Denmark (Vogue Scandinavia reported on this, and honestly, it's the kind of fact that sounds made up until you look it up). What's striking is how the role announced her as someone capable of anchoring a period production, not just filling a supporting slot. She'd been building toward it quietly — a nanny in the 2016 prestige series *The Night Manager*, an uncredited Goth Girl in *Riders of Justice* (2020), short films like *Alice Is a Nice Girl* (2017) and *Before Bloom* (2019).

Since *Ehrengard*, she's kept moving. The 2024 film *En af os ryster* cast her as Petra, and 2025 brought the series *Generationen*, where she plays Anne-Sofie. She's also studying Art History at the University of Copenhagen alongside theatre directing at the Danish National School of Performing Arts — because apparently acting isn't enough. She wants to direct too (Wikipedia). Hard to say if that dual ambition will pull her in two directions or sharpen both crafts. We'll find out.

Currently streaming

1 of 2 on platforms

Early life & background

Alice Esther Bier Zandén was born on September 26, 1995, into a family where film and performance weren't abstract career options — they were the air in the room. Her mother is Susanne Bier, the Danish director whose work spans *Brothers*, *In a Better World*, and the BBC/AMC series *The Night Manager*. Her father is Swedish actor Philip Zandén, and her aunt is actress Jessica Zandén (Wikipedia). Growing up with that lineage doesn't guarantee anything, of course, but it does mean she's been around serious creative work her entire life. She's currently pursuing dual academic paths: Art History at the University of Copenhagen and theatre directing at the Danish National School of Performing Arts — a combination that suggests someone thinking carefully about storytelling from multiple angles, not just the performance side (Wikipedia, Panorama Agency).

Career

Zandén's early screen work was the kind of thing you don't notice until later — small, uncredited, or supporting. She appeared as a nanny in the 2016 adaptation of *The Night Manager* (the same production her mother directed), which is either a great foot in the door or a complicated first credit depending on how you look at it. Short films followed: *Alice Is a Nice Girl* in 2017, *Before Bloom* in 2019. Then a blink-and-miss-it appearance as a Goth Girl in Anders Thomas Jensen's *Riders of Justice* (2020) — uncredited, but there. The shift happened in 2023. Bille August cast her in the title role of *Ehrengard: The Art of Seduction*, a Netflix period film based on Karen Blixen's novella. It's a demanding kind of role — the character carries the film's moral and emotional weight across its runtime — and Zandén handled it with a composure that felt earned rather than inherited. The production detail that won't leave anyone who covers it alone: Queen Margrethe II of Denmark designed the film's costumes. That's not a metaphor. The actual Queen. Vogue Scandinavia covered the story, and it's the sort of context that makes the whole project feel like a very specific cultural moment in Danish film history. She hasn't slowed down since. In 2024, she took on the role of Petra in *En af os ryster*, a Danish-language film that gave her room to work in a more contemporary register. Then 2025's *Generationer* — a series in which she plays Anne-Sofie — extended her into long-form television again. What's clear across this arc is that she's not chasing one type of project. Period drama, contemporary film, series work — she's moving across formats deliberately, and the directing studies at the Danish National School of Performing Arts suggest she's thinking about what comes after acting too (Panorama Agency, Wikipedia).

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For Wikipedia, journalism, or academic references — copy the citation below:

Movie OTT. "Alice E. Bier Zandén." Accessed Aug 1, 2026. https://movieott.com/talent/alice-e-bier-zanden

Last updated July 3, 2026 · Sources: tmdb+perplexity+tmdb-credits+ai-claude

Filmography

Frequently asked questions

What films is Alice E. Bier Zandén known for?

Alice E. Bier Zandén has 2 titles indexed on Movie OTT, including Lifting the Veil: Behind the Scenes of Ehrengard, Ehrengard: The Art of Seduction.

Where can I watch Alice E. Bier Zandén's films?

1 of Alice E. Bier Zandén's films are currently streaming, available on Netflix.