Ruben Östlund is a Swedish filmmaker who habituated critics and audiences to his excellent black comedies and satires, productions that, throughout his career, have earned him an enormous amount of nominations and awards. His latest film to date is no exception to the rule. In May 2022, within the framework of the Cannes Film Festival, Triangle of Sadness, a satirical black comedy directed and written by Östlund, was released, representing his first English-language film. This production, which won, among other awards, the Palme d'Or, is a satire that analyzes the disparity of social classes, the world of fashion and power dynamics, as well as the way in which certain situations can put these structures to the test.
Triangle of Sadness follows Carl and Yaya, a young and attractive couple on the crest of a wave: they are both models with up-and-coming careers, and Yaya is a sought-after influencer. As part of their work, they get their hands on tickets to travel on a luxury cruise ship with wealthy travelers that make life very difficult for the crew, who are under explicit orders to indulge their every desire. However, after a storm hits the ship and leaves some survivors on a seemingly deserted island, the hierarchical structures known so far collapse completely: it is no longer important who has the most money and wealth, but who owns the necessary skills to survive in this new environment.
The director announced he was starting to work on this film in 2017, shortly after winning the Palme d'Or for The Square, another of his acclaimed productions, although Triangle of Sadness took a little longer than expected due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since its release, the film received standing ovations and rave reviews, which included Academy Award nominations in the categories of Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay. The actors of the cast also earned great recognition and some nominations for their work in this production, which catapulted many of them in their careers. Here is a review of the Triangle of Sadness cast's previous work.
Harris Dickinson
English actor Harris Dickinson joined the industry very recently, and after appearing in a few episodes of the sitcom Some Girls in 2014, he gained great acclaim for his role in the drama Beach Rats, which marked his film acting debut. For his work in this Eliza Hittman film, Dickinson received a Best Male Lead nomination at the Independent Spirit Awards.
Following his debut, the actor went on to play a variety of roles, mostly in films. He starred in productions such as Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, Matthew Vaughn's spy action film The King's Man and See How They Run, a mystery comedy in which he co-starred with Ram Rockwell, Saoirse Ronan and Adrien Brody. The same year he starred in Triangle of Sadness, Harris also appeared in Where the Crawdads Sing, Olivia Newman's film inspired by the 2018 novel by Delia Owens.
Charlbi Dean
Charlbi Dean joined Dickinson in Triangle of Sadness as Yaya, a model and influencer who is only attached to her partner because of the popularity he brings her on social media. Dean took her first steps in the industry in 2010 with a small role in the comedy-drama Spud, which she reprised three years later in its sequel, Spud 2: The Madness Continues. While it was her work in Östlund's film that earned her the most acclaim, she was also well-known for her roles in the film An Interview With God and the superhero TV series Black Lightning, where she played Syonide.
In August 2022, shortly before the international premiere of Triangle of Sadness, this promising actress was hospitalized after feeling unwell, and despite having mild symptoms, she passed away just a few hours later due to bacterial sepsis, at the age of 32 (per PEOPLE).
Dolly De Leon
Triangle of Sadness was certainly a platform to stardom for Dolly De Leon, whose performance as Abigail, the cleaning lady who ends up managing everyone on the deserted island, made her the first Filipino actress to receive nominations at the Golden Globe Awards and the BAFTA Awards. However, this is not her first gig in the industry: De Leon is an established actress who has been working in film, television and theater for several years, mostly in productions of Filipino origin.
Among her most acclaimed projects are the crime drama film Verdict and the anthology series Folklore, currently in its second season. Undoubtedly, De Leon's future looks bright and promising, and she is sure to amaze international audiences with more outstanding performances in the near future. In fact, she is expected to star in Paul Feig's upcoming film Grand Death Lotto alongside John Cena and Awkwafina, although no release date has been announced yet.
Woody Harrelson
Woody Harrelson is a well-known face in the entertainment industry, and audiences have been treated to his performances since 1985, when he made his acting debut in the NBC sitcom Cheers. Over the years, he has excelled in all kinds of projects, even branching out into theatrical productions. Harrelson's roles in the industry are many, and he has played both comedic and dramatic characters flawlessly, the vast majority of them resulting in great acclaim.
Among his most popular films are White Men Can't Jump, Zombieland, The Messenger, and Now You See Me, a heist film in which he co-starred with Mark Ruffalo, Jesse Eisenberg, Isla Fisher, Dave Franco, Morgan Freeman, and Michael Caine. The actor also excelled in television, participating in series such as True Detective and The Freak Brothers. In Triangle of Sadness, Harrelson plays Captain Thomas Smith, who instead of ensuring the smooth running of the ship, spends all day drinking alcohol in his cabin.
Zlatko Burić
Croatian actor Zlatko Burić plays Dimitry, a Russian who has a lot of money and yet is extremely greedy. Throughout his career, Burić has appeared in many, many films and some TV productions, making his debut in 1996 in the crime thriller film Pusher, a Nicolas Winding Refn film that also marked Mads Mikkelsen's debut. Zlatko reprised his role in the two sequels of this production, in 2004 and 2005, as well as in the 2012 English-language remake.
Among the actor's most relevant projects is 2012, Roland Emmerich's disaster film based on the then phenomenon that claimed that the end of the world would happen in that year. In recent years, the actor also starred in Killerman and Mayday, in the latter, co-starring alongside Grace Van Patten, Mia Goth, and Juliette Lewis.
Iris Berben
Iris Berben is a German actress who, over the course of her career, has appeared in over 150 productions. She made her acting debut in the 1969 crime film Detectives, and from then on, she has starred in all kinds of films and shows. Among her most popular productions is Rosa Roth, a TV crime series in which she played the main character from 1994 to 2013.
Her portfolio also features Eddie the Eagle, a Dexter Fletcher sport film starring Taron Egerton and Hugh Jackman. In Triangle of Sadness, Berben plays Therese, one of the assistants on the ship who was left in a wheelchair after a stroke, unable to communicate except for a single sentence in German.
Amanda Walker
Amanda Walker plays Clementine, an elderly millionaire who made her fortune alongside her husband in the arms business, and ended up dying after she came into contact with one of her own grenades on the yacht. This English actress has been in the industry for many years, since her acting debut in 1960, and although she has appeared in some major films, such as 28 Weeks Later and A Room with a View, her work has been mainly in television, where she took part in several shows and TV films.
Some of the most notable TV productions in which she landed roles were Sense8, The Missing, and the medical soap opera Doctors, in which she played different roles over the years.
Oliver Ford Davies
Oliver Ford Davies is Winston, Clementine's husband who is also killed by his own explosive. Throughout his career, this English actor and writer has excelled mostly in theatrical productions, although he has also been involved in several film and TV projects, many of them with great success.
One of Ford Davies' best known roles is that of Sio Bibble in the Star Wars prequel trilogy films, which were released from 1999 to 2005. He also played Maester Cressen in the second season of the popular HBO series Game of Thrones. Some of his notable productions in recent years include The Deep Blue Sea, The Last Witness, and Christopher Robin, where he starred alongside Ewan McGregor and Hayley Atwell.
Sunnyi Melles
In Triangle of Sadness, Sunnyi Melles plays Vera, Dimitry's wife who dies after getting stranded on the deserted island following the storm. The actress entered the entertainment industry at a very young age, playing different roles in theatrical productions, and landed her first major part in the 1987 film '38 - Vienna Before the Fall, which was nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Foreign Language Film category.
Over the years, Melles has excelled in film and TV, taking part in projects from different countries that brought her great acclaim and some awards. Among her most outstanding films in recent years are The Awakening of Motti Wolkenbruch and Enfant Terrible, a German drama by Oskar Roehler.
Jean-Christophe Folly
Rounding out this list is Jean-Christophe Folly, who in Östlund's film plays Nelson, a ship mechanic who initially gets on badly with Dimitry after he accuses him of being one of the pirates who hijacked the ship. Folly's interest in acting dates back to his childhood, although it was not until 2001 that he decided to pursue his dreams of making it as an actor in the industry.
Therefore, he started with small parts as extra in films such as The Transporter and Ocean's Twelve until he got his first big opportunities. Over the years, he has appeared in productions such as 35 Shots of Rum, Jeune Femme, and To Each, Her Own, a 2018 Netflix rom-com that he starred in alongside Sarah Stern and Julia Piaton.
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