Michael Nyqvist dies aged 56 from lung cancer

Swedish actor Michael Nyqvist best known for a leading role in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo has died at the age of 56 after a year-long battle with lung cancer.

Nyqvist 'passed away quietly surrounded by family' in Stockholm, his spokeswoman Alissa Goodman said in a statement that called him 'one of Sweden's most respected and accomplished actors'.

'Michael's joy and passion were infectious to those who knew and loved him. 

'His charm and charisma were undeniable, and his love for the arts was felt by all who had the pleasure of working with him,' the statement said. 

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Sad news: Michael Nyqvist has died at the age of 56 it was revealed on Tuesday

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Nyqvist rose to prominence as the complex investigative journalist Mikael Blomkvist in film adaptations of Swedish author Stieg Larsson's gritty Millennium novel series that spawned The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo franchise. 

It provided a platform for the actor and he became best known for his role as Mikael Blomqvist in the original 2009 adaptation of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, where he starred alongside Noomi Rapace.

Family statement in full

It is with deep sadness that I can confirm that our beloved Michael, one of Sweden's most respected and accomplished actors, has passed away quietly surrounded by family. 

Michael's joy and passion were infectious to those who knew and loved him.

His charm and charisma were undeniable, and his love for the arts was felt by all who had the pleasure of working with him.

In the American adaptation - also based on Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy - his character was played by Daniel Craig.

More recently, he played menacing villains in Hollywood action films Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol.

Nyqvist made his debut as an author in 2010 with an autobiographical memoir Just After Dreaming, which detailed his quest to find his biological parents three decades after he was adopted as a baby.

The Swedish actor also starred in Colonia alongside Emma Watson and played a main role in John Wick with Keanu Reeves.  

Nyqvist has a number of films on the slate that are yet to come out, including Terrence Malick's World War Two drama Radegund and Thomas Vinterberg's Kursk, about the 2000 K-141 Kursk submarine disaster. 

Michael is survived by his wife Catharina and their children Ellen and Arthur. 

On screen: Michael was best known for his role as Mikael Blomqvist in the original 2009 adaptation of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, where he starred alongside Noomi Rapace

Tragic loss: 'Michael's joy and passion were infectious to those who knew and loved him. 'His charm and charisma were undeniable' read a family statement

Finding his roots: Michael was adopted and revealed that his quest to find his biological parents consumed his childhood and early adulthood

Nyqvist was adopted and revealed that his quest to find his biological parents consumed his childhood and early adulthood.

The star always possessed a passion for acting, and was educated at the School of Drama in Malmö. 

It is believed he decided to pursue acting as a career after travelling to Omaha, Nebraska for one year as an exchange student aged 17. 

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