Gunnar Hansen
Encyclopedia
Gunnar Milton Hansen is an Iceland
ic-born actor
and author
best known for playing Leatherface
in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
(1974).
, Iceland
, and moved to the United States when he was five. He lived in Maine
until age eleven, when his family moved to Texas
, where he attended both Austin High School
and the University of Texas at Austin
. He majored in English
and mathematics
as an undergraduate, and then went to graduate school in Scandinavian Studies and English.
was being filmed in Austin
and decided to try out. He got the part of Leatherface, the masked killer in the movie.
After the success of the movie, Hansen co-starred in Demon Lover, but after the experience he decided not to continue acting, instead pursuing a writing career. In 1975, after one extra year of graduate school, Hansen moved back to Maine
and started writing. During this time he rejected a part he was offered in the cult horror film The Hills Have Eyes
.
After writing (and occasionally editing) for magazines and writing books, Hansen returned to acting in 1988, appearing in the horror spoof Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers
, and has appeared in 20 films since. He considers his recent acting as a side project and has continued to write books. He has also written film scripts, and writes and directs documentary films.
Hansen is also an author; his nonfiction travel memoir, Islands at the Edge of Time, A journey to America's Barrier Islands, was published in 1993. In addition, he has taught college as an adjunct instructor.
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
ic-born actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
best known for playing Leatherface
Leatherface
Leatherface is the main antagonist in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre horror-film series and its spin-offs. He wears masks made of human skin and engages in murder and cannibalism alongside his inbred family. He is considered by many to be one of the first major slasher film villains alongside Michael...
in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is a 1974 American independent horror film directed and produced by Tobe Hooper, who cowrote it with Kim Henkel. It stars Marilyn Burns, Paul A. Partain, Edwin Neal, Jim Siedow, and Gunnar Hansen, who respectively portray Sally Hardesty, Franklin Hardesty, the...
(1974).
Early life
Hansen was born in ReykjavíkReykjavík
Reykjavík is the capital and largest city in Iceland.Its latitude at 64°08' N makes it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói Bay...
, Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
, and moved to the United States when he was five. He lived in Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
until age eleven, when his family moved to Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, where he attended both Austin High School
Austin High School (Austin, Texas)
Stephen F. Austin High School, or more commonly Austin High, founded in 1881, is one of the oldest public high schools west of the Mississippi River, and was the first public high school in the state of Texas....
and the University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
. He majored in English
English studies
English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language , English linguistics English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language (including literatures from the U.K., U.S.,...
and mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
as an undergraduate, and then went to graduate school in Scandinavian Studies and English.
Career
His first job out of high school was as a computer operator, before he began theater work during college. He was also a football player during high school, and for a while a bar bouncer. In 1973, just after finishing graduate school, Hansen heard that The Texas Chain Saw MassacreThe Texas Chain Saw Massacre
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is a 1974 American independent horror film directed and produced by Tobe Hooper, who cowrote it with Kim Henkel. It stars Marilyn Burns, Paul A. Partain, Edwin Neal, Jim Siedow, and Gunnar Hansen, who respectively portray Sally Hardesty, Franklin Hardesty, the...
was being filmed in Austin
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
and decided to try out. He got the part of Leatherface, the masked killer in the movie.
After the success of the movie, Hansen co-starred in Demon Lover, but after the experience he decided not to continue acting, instead pursuing a writing career. In 1975, after one extra year of graduate school, Hansen moved back to Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
and started writing. During this time he rejected a part he was offered in the cult horror film The Hills Have Eyes
The Hills Have Eyes (1977 film)
The Hills Have Eyes is a 1977 American horror film directed by Wes Craven and starring Susan Lanier, Michael Berryman, and Dee Wallace. It is about a family on a road trip who become stranded in the Nevada desert, and are hunted by a clan of deformed cannibals in the surrounding hills...
.
After writing (and occasionally editing) for magazines and writing books, Hansen returned to acting in 1988, appearing in the horror spoof Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers
Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers
Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers is a 1988 American comedy horror B-movie directed by Fred Olen Ray, and starring Gunnar Hansen, Linnea Quigley, Jay Richardson and Michelle Bauer.-Plot summary:...
, and has appeared in 20 films since. He considers his recent acting as a side project and has continued to write books. He has also written film scripts, and writes and directs documentary films.
Hansen is also an author; his nonfiction travel memoir, Islands at the Edge of Time, A journey to America's Barrier Islands, was published in 1993. In addition, he has taught college as an adjunct instructor.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | The Texas Chain Saw Massacre The Texas Chain Saw Massacre The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is a 1974 American independent horror film directed and produced by Tobe Hooper, who cowrote it with Kim Henkel. It stars Marilyn Burns, Paul A. Partain, Edwin Neal, Jim Siedow, and Gunnar Hansen, who respectively portray Sally Hardesty, Franklin Hardesty, the... |
Leatherface Leatherface Leatherface is the main antagonist in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre horror-film series and its spin-offs. He wears masks made of human skin and engages in murder and cannibalism alongside his inbred family. He is considered by many to be one of the first major slasher film villains alongside Michael... |
|
| 1977 | The Demon Lover | Prof. Peckinpah | |
| 1988 | Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers is a 1988 American comedy horror B-movie directed by Fred Olen Ray, and starring Gunnar Hansen, Linnea Quigley, Jay Richardson and Michelle Bauer.-Plot summary:... |
The Stranger | |
| 1991 | Campfire Tales Campfire Tales Campfire Tales is a horror film written and directed by William Cooke and Paul Talbot. The film is an anthology about a group of teenagers telling ghost stories around a campfire. One of the storytellers is horror legend Gunnar Hansen... |
Ralph | |
| 1995 | Exploding Angel | Walter | |
| Mosquito Mosquito (film) Mosquito is a 1995 science fiction film directed by Gary Jones. The film's plot pays homage to the classic 50's horror genre. Mosquito is about mosquitoes that become mutated when a spaceship crash lands in a swamp. The mosquitoes grow to enormous size and attack campers in a remote northern... |
Earl the Bankrobber | ||
| Freakshow | Freakmaster | Direct-to-video Direct-to-video Direct-to-video is a term used to describe a film that has been released to the public on home video formats without being released in film theaters or broadcast on television... |
|
| 1996 | Repligator | Dr. Kildare | |
| 1999 | Hellblock 13 | The Executioner | Direct-to-video |
| 2002 | Hatred of a Minute Hatred of a Minute Hatred of a Minute is a 2002 thriller film directed by and starring Michael Kallio and produced by Bruce Campbell. Kallio co-wrote the script with Lisa Jesswein who also appears in the movie. Producer Campbell also makes a brief cameo in the film.-Plot:... |
Barry | |
| Witchunter | Michael Jones | Direct-to-video | |
| Rachel's Attic | Ronald | ||
| Sinister | The Piper | Short film | |
| 2003 | Next Victim | Doctor Howard | |
| 2004 | The Business | Grandfather | Short film, direct-to-video |
| Chainsaw Sally | Daddy | ||
| Murder-Set-Pieces Murder-Set-Pieces Murder-Set-Pieces is a 2004 slasher film written, produced and directed by Nick Palumbo.- Plot :This American film deals with the activities of a wealthy immigrant serial killer; a German photographer, who leads a double life: by day he shoots erotic photos... |
Mechanic | ||
| 2005 | Apocalypse and the Beauty Queen | Reggie | |
| Wolfsbayne | The Elder | ||
| 2006 | Swarm of the Snakehead Swarm of the Snakehead Swarm of the Snakehead is a 2006 comedy/horror feature film directed by Frank A. Lama and Joel C. Denning and written by Seth Hurwitz. It is the first feature from producers Lama and Hurwitz's Baltimore-based production company Ten Pound Films.... |
Gunner | |
| The Deepening | Dr. Chambers | ||
| 2007 | Brutal Massacre: A Comedy | Krenshaw | |
| Shudder | Direct-to-video | ||
| Gimme Skelter | Porter Sandford | ||
| 2009 | Won Ton Baby! | Dr. Kurt Severson | |
| It Came from Trafalgar | Tex Ghoul | ||
| Reykjavik Whale Watching Massacre Reykjavik Whale Watching Massacre Reykjavík Whale Watching massacre or RWWM is an Icelandic 2009 horror film.- Plot :An epic tale about a group of tourists who go on whale watching expedition. During the expedition the ship breaks down and they are picked up by a nearby whaler... |
Captain Pétur | ||
- Knight of the Living DeadKnight of the Living DeadKnight of the Living Dead is a 2005 Icelandic film about a knight and a Viking who get resurrected and continue their gruesome battle in the year 2005....
(2005) (special thanks)
Self - filmography
- Terror in the AislesTerror in the AislesTerror in the Aisles is a 1984 documentary film about horror films featuring clips from Friday the 13th I and/or II, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Halloween I and II, Jaws 1 and 2, Alien, John Carpenter's The Thing, The Shining and Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho and The Birds. The film is hosted by...
(1984) - archival footage - Texas Chainsaw Massacre: A Family Portrait (1988)
- Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Shocking Truth (2000)
- Leatherface Speaks: An Informal Interview with Gunnar Hansen (2001)
- Behind the Attic Door: The Making of "Rachel's Attic" (2002)
- UnConventional (2004)
- Flesh Wounds: Seven Stories of the Saw (2006)