Hollywood Crush › Alexander Skarsgard

Further proof an actor should think twice about turning down a badass bloodsucker role: Directors watch vampire dramas too.

MTV News recently caught up with "Battleship" helmer Peter Berg and the film's leading man Alexander Skarsgård (whom you may know as Eric from HBO's "True Blood") at Toy Fair, and the director let it be known he's been following Alex's work on a certain sexy series.

"I was a fan of 'True Blood' [and] all the girls in the office stormed my office and demanded that we cast him," Peter said of offering the role to the Swede. Of course, with the topic of "True Blood" on the table, I had to ask Alex for any and all hints about the upcoming season, set to debut this summer.

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Tags Alexander Skarsgard, Battleship, Chris Meloni, True Blood, Video

Last week, we kicked off our countdown of the Top 10 Hump Day Hotties of 2011, and with babes like Chris Hemsworth, Armie Hammer and Joseph Morgan already on the list, it may have you wondering just who else is left. Well, the wait is over. Here’s our Top 5 Hotties of the year.

5. Alexander Skarsgård, “True Blood”
His "True Blood" character, Eric Northman, is often naked, and we can’t complain. But not only did he strip away those layers this season, he also stripped away his vampy bravado, making not only Sookie fall for him, but us as well. Then again, we already were pretty sweet on him to begin with.

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Tags Alexander Skarsgard, Channing Tatum, Hump Day Hottie, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Josh Hutcherson, Ryan Gosling

It wouldn't be a new season of "True Blood" without a slew of new supernaturals to keep tabs on. And though filming hasn't started quite yet on season five of HBO's vampire drama, we're already getting our first taste of new blood.

TVLine is reporting that British actress Lucy Griffiths (formerly of BBC's "Robin Hood") is joining the series as Eric's (Alexander Skarsgård) vampire "sister" (i.e. both were created by dearly departed Godric). Lucy will be a series regular, meaning we'll see a lot of her come summer 2012.

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Tags Alexander Skarsgard, Lucy Griffiths, True Blood

Confession: There is nothing I love more than a great bromance. Whether between real-life guy friends, two fun characters on TV or the actors who play them. There's just something adorably warm and fuzzy about affection shared and expressed between two dudes.

The men in the "True Blood" cast are especially bromantic, and it's awesome. (My favorite example: That scene in the season three finale, when Eric says to Alcide and Bill: "If you two are done eye-f---ing each other, can we go?") In addition to Alexander Skarsgård recently hinting at more Bill-Eric moments, MTV News had a chance encounter with Stephen Moyer, who's equally enthused about the idea.

Before we approached Stephen with the bromance angle, however, we wondered if he'd had a chance to read the season five scripts yet, which we knew were delivered to the cast members recently.

"How did you hear that?" a suspicious Stephen asked when we chatted with him at TeenNick's HALO Awards. (We're MTV, yo. We've got people.) "Yes we did [get them]. I haven’t read it yet. I haven’t had a moment to. It’s been busy the last few weeks and days, so I haven’t had a chance," he admitted. "I was talking about it today, I really must. Anna [Paquin] hasn’t read it either."

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Tags Alexander Skarsgard, Joe Manganiello, Stephen Moyer, True Blood, Video

One of the most unlikely relationships to emerge from "True Blood"'s witch-rich fourth season was that deliciously uneasy alliance between avowed, Sookie-loving rivals Bill and Eric (expertly played by Stephen Moyer and Alexander Skarsgård). And if last season's Russell Edgington cliffhanger is any indication, the pair will once again have to join forces to bring down a shared foe. Man, waiting does suck!

Thankfully, when we sat down with Alexander recently to chat about his upcoming movie "Melancholia," he was happy to devote a few moments to theorizing about what's in store for our favorite Bon Temps residents. And, more specifically, whether we can expect more bromantical moments between Bill and Eric.

"Yes, I think so," Alex said with a chuckle. "That's been fun. Stephen is awesome. I love working with him. It's an interesting dynamic between those two guys, those two characters. I could see that. I don't know. I haven't read—they're breaking season five now, so I don't know what's going to happen, but I'm sure there's going to be some nice Bill and Eric moments."

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Tags Alexander Skarsgard, Melancholia, True Blood, Video

James Marsden is a busy guy. He's got a bunch of projects lined up, and he's currently filming the comedy "Bachelorette." But we couldn't help but notice one thing while scanning his IMDb page: He's worked with two "True Blood" stars and has yet to appear on the vampy soap.

When we caught up with James at the "Straw Dogs" premiere, we inquired: Would he love to be on the show at some point? "Oh, that's right [I've starred with] Anna Paquin [in 'X-Men'] and now Alexander [Skarsgård]," he said. "That's a good question."

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Tags Alexander Skarsgard, James Marsden, True Blood, Video

Alexander Skarsgård has made a career out of playing complicated dudes. His turn as Eric on "True Blood" is multi-layered, especially now that he's come back from his bout with amnesia.

"They're writing the season right now and there's a great opportunity here 'cause old Eric is back, but it's not the old Eric, 'cause he still remembers the love with Sookie and that changed him," he explained of the plot twist.

And, we have to say that in "Straw Dogs," which hit theaters last week, he plays equally complicated Charlie. Something he said he wanted to bring to his portrayal of the small-town guy still pining over his former love, played by Kate Bosworth.

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Tags Alexander Skarsgard, Straw Dogs, True Blood, Video

It's been an interesting season for the frequently nude, ever evolving Eric on "True Blood." He lost himself for a while there, and while in an amnesiac state, fell for Sookie. And in turn, she kind of fell for him. (Side note: WHO COULD BLAME HER?!) And then, well, he regained his memory and he wasn't a hoodie-wearing Eric anymore and the bad boy was back.

Except as the charming Alexander Skarsgard told us at the New York premiere for "Straw Dogs," he may be as bad as ever, but he certainly isn't the same. "They're writing the season right now and there's a great opportunity here 'cause old Eric is back, but it's not the old Eric, 'cause he still remembers the love with Sookie and that changed him," he explained, as we swooned.

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Tags Alexander Skarsgard, Anna Paquin, Straw Dogs, True Blood

Hide yo kids, hide yo wife: It's a "True Blood" season finale, and—as suggested by that screamy Bon Temps depopulation teaser they've been showing all week—they killin' ERRBODY out here.

Ding, dong, the witch is dead
Jesus, distracted by guilt over aiding in the murder of his good pal Marnie, is a little too slow to realize that Lafayette has been possessed by her. Too bad! A grievous fork-to-hand injury could've been avoided if he'd just paid a little attention—as could the very, very sad thing that happens next. Because Marnie's in control, and she wants Jesus' brujo magic... ALL of it, she says, and this can't mean anything good. But Laf's life is at stake, and Jesus agrees to hand over his powers. Marfayette stabs him in the heart and gets the Demon Cathead. Jesus, in exchange, gets dead.

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Tags Alexander Skarsgard, Anna Paquin, Deborah Ann Woll, Kevin Alejandro, Kristin Bauer, Nelsan Ellis, Rutina Wesley, Ryan Kwanten, Stephen Moyer, True Blood

"True Blood" star Alexander Skarsgård is one of the best presents Sweden has ever given us—aside from meatballs and Ikea. We could go on and on and on about why he makes us swoon but, really, just looking at him explains it all. That's why he's this week's Hump Day Hottie.

Check out this dreamy photo of Alex, and then keep reading for more details about him!

Vital stats: The 35-year-old hunk was born to be an actor. His dad is Stellan Skarsgard (who you may remember from "Good Will Hunting" and the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies), and he acted a bit in his youth. But, Alex is more than just a pretty face. He's also done some time in the military, where he was in a unit that dealt with anti-sabotage and anti-terrorism. And he eventually went to university. Two to be exact: Leeds Metropolitan University and Marymount Manhattan College, before he decided to finally go into acting for good.

Oh, yeah, he's single again. Thank. Goodness.

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Tags Alexander Skarsgard, Battleship, Hump Day Hottie, Melancholia, Starw Dogs, True Blood