Author Jo Nesbo turns Oslo into 'Gotham City' for Norwegian crime series 'Detective Hole'

Record ID: 2369887

  • Title: Author Jo Nesbo turns Oslo into 'Gotham City' for Norwegian crime series 'Detective Hole'
  • Date: 26th March 2026
  • Summary: OSLO, NORWAY (MARCH 20, 2026) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) SWEDISH ACTOR, JOEL KINNAMAN, ON RETURNING TO SCANDINAVIAN PRODUCTIONS AFTER HOLLYWOOD CAREER, SAYING: “Well, for me this was like coming home, you know. And I haven't played anything in Sweden or in Scandinavia for 15 years. I haven't played in Swedish. And in this show, like my character is Swedish, so I'm playing in Sw
  • Embargoed:
  • Keywords: Detective Hole Ellen Helinder Harry Hole Jo Nesbo Jo Nesbo's Detective Hole Jo Nesbo's Harry Hole Joel Kinnaman The Devil's Star Tobias Santelmann
  • Location: OSLO, NORWAY / VARIOUS
  • City: OSLO, NORWAY / VARIOUS
  • Country: UK
  • Topics: Arts/Culture/Entertainment,Europe,Television
  • Reuters ID: LVA00C723825032026RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Norwegian author Jo Nesbo has sold millions of copies in his multi-decade career, garnering acclaim for his gritty crime novels centred around the character Detective Harry Hole. 
        Now, Nesbo's creation is getting the Netflix treatment with "Detective Hole", a Norwegian crime drama that stars Tobias Santelmann as the titular protagonist.
        Nesbo also serves as the screenwriter with the series largely based on his fifth Harry Hole novel "The Devil's Star". The franchise has been adapted in several films before, including the 2017 Hollywood adaptation "The Snowman" but the Netflix series marks the Norwegian detective's television debut. 
        Speaking to Reuters, Nesbo said that Universal Pictures initially owned the rights before approaching him to develop a Harry Hole television series. He added: "I said, okay, if you want to make it a nine-hour story instead of a two-hour story, I'm on board."
        Set in the capital city of Oslo, "Detective Hole" draws its characters into the city's dark underbelly with Nesbo equating Oslo with comic book character Batman's fictional city Gotham. Nesbo said: "The TV series paints this picture of Oslo as the real Oslo, but as in the books, it's sort of a Gotham City version of Oslo. You can go to places in Oslo that looks exactly like it is in the TV series, but it's not the places you will see as a tourist."
       Swedish actor Joel Kinnaman, who is established as a Hollywood actor with films like "Suicide Squad" and the "Robocop" remake, also has a supporting role in the series as Tom Waaler, Harry Hole's corrupt colleague in the police force. 
        Kinnaman describes the experience as a "homecoming" as he hasn't acted in any Swedish or Scandinavian production for 15 years. While "Detective Hole" is his first Norwegian credit, the actor notes that Swedish and Norwegian are very "similar" with hardly any differences in dialect. 
        "Detective Hole" releases on Netflix this Thursday (March 26). The crime thriller releases in Scandinavian territories under the name "Harry Hole". 
    (Production: Shaurya Thapa)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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