Johanna Sällström
Encyclopedia
Johanna Maria Ellinor Berglund-Sällström (born Johanna Maria Ellinor Berglund, 30 December 1974 in Stockholm
, died 13 February 2007 in Malmö
) was a Swedish actress. She worked as an actress for more than 15 years before her suicide.
at the age of 15 in A Midsummer Night's Dream
.
Tre kronor
. Thereafter she appeared in numerous productions, and received a Guldbagge Award
for best female actress in 1998. Later that same year, unable to cope with her new-found celebrity, she took a break from filming and moved to Copenhagen, Denmark, where she worked in a café.
In 2000 she returned to Sweden to continue her acting career. If she had wanted to disappear and be forgotten about, she had very much achieved that. She did not enjoy the success of previous years until she won the role of police agent Linda Wallander in the Swedish TV series Wallander, which brought her career and financial success again. She became internationally known for her role in the series, based on Henning Mankell
's books about Kurt Wallander
, the first two seasons airing in 2005 and 2006.
Her last role was in an Ystad
theatre production of Anton Chekhov's
play The Seagull
, which she left prematurely due to illness.
Sällström was found dead in her home in Malmö
shortly before midnight on 13 February 2007. She had recently been released from a psychiatric unit where she had been receiving treatment for depression
. The cause of her death was suicide, believed to have been triggered by the 2004 Tsunami. However, this was only the final, devastating precipitous psychological decline she suffered in a life-long battle with depression. She had stated in an interview in 2006 with the editor of the magazine Tove, "I always thought I would be dead at the age of thirty." Already battered and weakened by years of mental illness, the tsunami shattered her fragile psyche, culminating in her overdose on sleeping pills at the age of 32. She had made it past 30, but it could be said that her death was a self-fulfilling prophecy.
After her death, Henning Mankell
was unable to write the last two novels of his projected Linda Wallander trilogy, as his grief and guilt were too great.
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, died 13 February 2007 in Malmö
Malmö
Malmö , in the southernmost province of Scania, is the third most populous city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg.Malmö is the seat of Malmö Municipality and the capital of Skåne County...
) was a Swedish actress. She worked as an actress for more than 15 years before her suicide.
Early life
Sällström made her first stage appearance in HudiksvallHudiksvall
Hudiksvall is a city and the seat of Hudiksvall Municipality, in Hälsingland, Gävleborg County, Sweden with 14,850 inhabitants in 2005. Hudiksvall is also known as Glada Hudik , a term that originated in the 19th century as word spread of its friendly hospitality and its lively social life...
at the age of 15 in A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream is a play that was written by William Shakespeare. It is believed to have been written between 1590 and 1596. It portrays the events surrounding the marriage of the Duke of Athens, Theseus, and the Queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta...
.
Career
She became famous in Sweden in the 1990s after portraying the teenage girl Victoria Bärnsten in the soap operaSoap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
Tre kronor
Tre kronor (TV series)
Tre kronor was a Swedish soap opera that aired on TV4 during the period 1994-1999. The series took place in the fictive middle class suburb Mälarviken, located in the vicinity of Stockholm. The exteriors were filmed in Sätra, a suburb of Stockholm, and the interiors were filmed in a studio in...
. Thereafter she appeared in numerous productions, and received a Guldbagge Award
Guldbagge Award
The Guldbagge Award is an official Swedish film award awarded annually since 1964 by the Swedish Film Institute.-Etymology:Guldbagge is the Swedish name for Cetonia aurata, a beetle also known as rose chafer. The name of the award could also be interpreted as a play on the Swedish word skalbagge,...
for best female actress in 1998. Later that same year, unable to cope with her new-found celebrity, she took a break from filming and moved to Copenhagen, Denmark, where she worked in a café.
In 2000 she returned to Sweden to continue her acting career. If she had wanted to disappear and be forgotten about, she had very much achieved that. She did not enjoy the success of previous years until she won the role of police agent Linda Wallander in the Swedish TV series Wallander, which brought her career and financial success again. She became internationally known for her role in the series, based on Henning Mankell
Henning Mankell
Henning Mankell is a Swedish crime writer, children's author, leftist activist and dramatist, best known for a series of mystery novels starring his most famous creation, Inspector Kurt Wallander.-Life and career:...
's books about Kurt Wallander
Kurt Wallander
Kurt Wallander is a fictional character created by Swedish crime writer Henning Mankell. The protagonist of several mystery novels, set in and around the town of Ystad, 60 km south-east of the city of Malmö, in the southern province of Skåne...
, the first two seasons airing in 2005 and 2006.
Her last role was in an Ystad
Ystad
Ystad is a "locality", or town, and the seat of Ystad Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden, with 17,286 inhabitants .Settlement dates back to the 11th century and the town has become a busy ferryport, local administrative centre and tourist attraction...
theatre production of Anton Chekhov's
Anton Chekhov
Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was a Russian physician, dramatist and author who is considered to be among the greatest writers of short stories in history. His career as a dramatist produced four classics and his best short stories are held in high esteem by writers and critics...
play The Seagull
The Seagull
The Seagull is the first of what are generally considered to be the four major plays by the Russian dramatist Anton Chekhov. The Seagull was written in 1895 and first produced in 1896...
, which she left prematurely due to illness.
Personal Life, and Death
Johanna married Albin Sällström in 2000; they were divorced in 2002, about a year after the birth of their daughter Talula. In 2004 Johanna and Talula narrowly escaped death in the 2004 tsunami while vacationing in Thailand. Johanna clung desperately to a tree with one arm and to her daughter with her other arm.Sällström was found dead in her home in Malmö
Malmö
Malmö , in the southernmost province of Scania, is the third most populous city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg.Malmö is the seat of Malmö Municipality and the capital of Skåne County...
shortly before midnight on 13 February 2007. She had recently been released from a psychiatric unit where she had been receiving treatment for depression
Mood disorder
Mood disorder is the term designating a group of diagnoses in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders classification system where a disturbance in the person's mood is hypothesized to be the main underlying feature...
. The cause of her death was suicide, believed to have been triggered by the 2004 Tsunami. However, this was only the final, devastating precipitous psychological decline she suffered in a life-long battle with depression. She had stated in an interview in 2006 with the editor of the magazine Tove, "I always thought I would be dead at the age of thirty." Already battered and weakened by years of mental illness, the tsunami shattered her fragile psyche, culminating in her overdose on sleeping pills at the age of 32. She had made it past 30, but it could be said that her death was a self-fulfilling prophecy.
After her death, Henning Mankell
Henning Mankell
Henning Mankell is a Swedish crime writer, children's author, leftist activist and dramatist, best known for a series of mystery novels starring his most famous creation, Inspector Kurt Wallander.-Life and career:...
was unable to write the last two novels of his projected Linda Wallander trilogy, as his grief and guilt were too great.