Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Murderbot season 1, episode 2.Alexander Skarsgård has already impressed audiences with his titular character in Murderbot, and his 7-year-old sci-fi thriller movie shows exactly why he's so good at playing SecUnit. Murderbot debuted to a truly impressive Rotten Tomatoes score - 98% with critics - and many of the reviews for Murderbot have lauded Alexander Skarsgård. Skarsgård has long been an acclaimed actor, and his comedic chops are on full display in Murderbot, but there's more to the casting than meets the eye. Murderbot is a very difficult character to play, and part of the reason Skarsgård is so good at it is that he got to practice for it seven years in advance.

Alexander Skarsgård leads the end of Murderbot season 1, episode 2, the vast majority of Murderbot's lines were completely internal, and Skarsgård was essentially acting with only his face. It's no wonder that he was so good at it, however, when considering his 2018 sci-fi thriller that's available to stream on Netflix.

Alexander Skarsgård's Role In Mute Perfectly Prepared Him For Murderbot

Mute Prepared Skarsgård For The Wordless Facial Acting Murderbot Demanded Of Him

Leo (Alexander Skarsgård) looking at a picture in Mute

Long before he played the taciturn Murderbot, Alexander Skarsgård played an almost completely silent action hero in Netflix's 2018 sci-fi thriller Mute. In Mute, Skarsgård played Leo, a man who was rendered mute after a childhood boating accident damaged his vocal cords. Skarsgård is essentially silent as Leo goes on a quest to rescue his girlfriend and fight off the Russian mob, which makes Mute an incredibly similar role to Murderbot. Mute proved that Skarsgård was more than capable of playing a quiet character who conveys emotions through his face alone years before he put on the SecUnit armor.

Along with proving that Skarsgård was capable of showing complex emotions visually, Mute also prepared him for several other key parts of Murderbot. Mute takes place in the near future and has a strong cyberpunk feel to it, which perfectly meshes with Murderbot's sci-fi dystopia. Skarsgård's characters are also extremely similar: both Leo and Murderbot are soft-spoken people who are fiercely protective and ruthlessly efficient fighters. Mute and Murderbot also feature some intense action and dry humor, both of which are right in Skarsgård's wheelhouse. Skarsgård's performance in Mute almost feels like proof that he was born to play Murderbot.

Murderbot Was Always Going To Be A Hard Part To Cast, But Skarsgård Was The Best Choice

Acting as a robot is never an easy task, but Murderbot was always going to be even harder than normal. Apple TV+'s decision to retain Murderbot's internal monologue made it so that whoever was chosen to play the SecUnit was going to have to be capable of some intense facial acting. The audience does get to hear Murderbot's thoughts in the show, but Skarsgård also had to convey the anxiety Murderbot was feeling without the benefit of his own voice. Even when Murderbot does talk out loud, its voice is often monotone and robotic, which means Skarsgård was always going to have to rely on his facial expressions.

Murderbot (Alexander Skarsgård) looking horrified in Murderbot season 1

Why Alexander Skarsgård's Murderbot Character Is Referred To As "It" In The Apple TV+ Show

Murderbot is frequently called "it" in Apple TV+'s sci-fi thriller, but that pronoun doesn't dehumanize the SecUnit - it makes it even more unique.

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On top of it all, Murderbot didn't just need an actor who could convey emotions through his face alone, it also needed a comedian and an action star. The biggest challenge is certainly conveying extreme social anxiety wordlessly, but Murderbot also has to be a nearly unstoppable killing machine and capable of delivering extremely dry humor. Other actors may have been able to convey Murderbot's emotions through facial expressions alone, but only Alexander Skarsgård could nail everything he needed to do to play the SecUnit. Mute certainly helped, but no one else could have pulled off Murderbot like Skarsgård.