‘Tattoo’ star Rapace snags Hollywood role

The 30-year-old actress from Hudiksvall in eastern Sweden has been signed by Warner Bros. studios to play opposite Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law in “Sherlock Holmes 2”, The Hollywood Reporter reports.

Rapace’s first English speaking film role “remains shrouded in mystery”, according to the newspaper, citing some sources claiming the Swedish actress may be playing a French Gypsy.

The film will be directed by Guy Ritchie, who also directed the first installment of the Sherlock Holmes series, which grossed more than $520 million worldwide.

Rapace took home Best Actress honours at the Swedish film awards in January for her portrayal of the brooding Salander.

Her performance also caused American film critics to swoon when the first installment of the Swedish version of the Millennium films hit US theatres.

“I can’t think of an American actress who could play Lisbeth…Someone able to play hard as nails and emotionally unavailable. Make her a Swede, and simply cast Noomi Rapace,” Chicago Sun Times star critic Roger Ebert said at the time.

In August, it was announced that Rooney Mara, a relative Hollywood unknown, would be cast as Salander in the English-language version of the first film, “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”, which is due to be released in December 2011, the same time as “Sherlock Holmes 2” is scheduled for release.