Darko Perić ( sr-cyr, Дарко Перић; born 25 March 1977) is an actor. He is best known for playing Helsinki in the Spanish crime thriller series '' La Casa de Papel (Money Heist)''.

Early life

Perić was born in

Kladovo Kladovo ( sr-Cyrl, Кладово, ; or ) is a town and municipality located in the Bor District of Southern and Eastern Serbia, eastern Serbia. It is situated on the right bank of the Danube river. Name In Serbian language, Serbian, the town i ...

. He showed interest in the arts from a very young age; his first time onstage came at the age of six, when a Cuban singer invited him to sing "

Guantanamera "" (; ) is a Cuban patriotic song, which uses a poem from the collection ''Simple Verses'', by the Cuban poet José Martí, for the lyrics. It is an expression of love for Cuba and of solidarity with the poor people of the world. The official ...

". That moment inspired him to perform in every school play. In 1991, at the start of the

Yugoslav Wars The Yugoslav Wars were a series of separate but related#Naimark, Naimark (2003), p. xvii. ethnic conflicts, wars of independence, and Insurgency, insurgencies that took place from 1991 to 2001 in what had been the Socialist Federal Republic of ...

, his dreams of going to animation school in

Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

were halted. His parents decided that he should instead become a doctor. He was sent to veterinary school in

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

in Romania, where he rediscovered his passion for the cinema and theatre thanks to his student friends at the Romanian Film Academy. During that time, he continued to study medicine while acting in short films. In 1994, Perić moved to the Romanian city of

Timișoara Timișoara (, , ; , also or ; ; ; see #Etymology, other names) is the capital city of Timiș County, Banat, and the main economic, social and cultural center in Western Romania. Located on the Bega (Tisza), Bega River, Timișoara is consider ...

, where he continued his studies of medicine and performed in live theatre. After six years of living in Timișoara, he finished his studies and graduated with honours in veterinary medicine. While there, he had also gotten involved in the local hardcore and

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

scenes, singing in bands and organizing events in the local cultural centre, where he met many international artists. This inspired him to move to Germany, where he settled in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. He continued to act in short films there until 2004, when he moved to Spain and chose

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

as a place to live.

Career

Perić was cast in his first major Spanish job in the series ''Crematorio'' for Canal + in 2010. In 2015, he performed in '' A Perfect Day''. In 2016, he was cast in the Atresmedia produced series '' Sea of Plastic / Mar de plástico'', in which he played Oso, a Ukrainian gangster and the main villain in the series. His best known role is of Helsinki in the crime thriller series '' Money Heist'' (2017–2021). The series was acquired by

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

, which helped it become one of the most watched shows, winning the Best Drama at the

Emmy Awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

in 2018.

Personal life

Perić speaks six languages and teaches

Qigong Qigong ()) is a system of coordinated body-posture and movement, breathing, and meditation said to be useful for the purposes of health, spirituality, and martial arts training. With roots in Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chinese medicine, Chin ...

around the world in masterclasses titled "Qigong: Physical and Mental Preparation for Actors". He is an avid

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

fan.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * * 1977 births Living people Serbian male television actors 20th-century Serbian male actors 21st-century Serbian male actors People from Kladovo {{Serbia-actor-stub