The long awaited third instalment of The Bridge (Broen) hits Danish television screens on September 27th, but it will be missing one half of the Danish-Swedish cop duo that has been the focus Scandinavia's biggest crime show since it launched in 2011.
Copenhagen-born actor Kim Bodnia quit the programme after the second season because he did not like the way his character Martin Rodhe developed. But Sofia Helin, who plays Saga Norén, the unusual autistic Swedish investigator assigned to work alongside him, will return.
The programme previously focused on the duo solving crimes linked to the Øresund Bridge, which connects the Danish capital with Malmö in southern Sweden. The two police officers were seen developing a close relationship despite having very different personalities and their interactions formed a huge part of the show.
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“When Kim told us he didn’t want to do it any more, it was clear that there was a black hole,” writer Hans Rosenfeldt told Swedish broadcaster SVT this week.
Kim Bodnia's Martin Rohde will not be in the new season. Photo: Carolina Romare/DR
But he insisted that the show would continue to entertain viewers by looking at cultural differences between Danes and Swedes.
“We provide other Danes around Saga, which works just fine, and actually allows us to explore other sides of her,” he said.
However he said that the show’s atmosphere would shift following the exit of the warm-hearted Martin Rodhe and his sometimes sloppy approach to both policing and relationships.
“It will become something completely different this time. This is very much Saga's season, earlier the focus was much more on Martin and his private life.”
Fans have raised concerns on social media that the third season will not be able to live up to their expectations, due to the departure of Rodhe. A trailer for the third season gives viewers a glimpse of Danish actor Thure Lindhardt (0:44 mark), known for roles in Danish films like Steppeulvene and Nordkraft as well as appearances in international hits like the Fast and Furious franchise. Lindhardt will play a character named Henrik and press promos for the third season feature him posing alongside Helin, but Danish broadcaster DR is tight-lipped about just who will fill Bodina’s role as the main Danish character. Well-known actor Nicolas Bro, who is seemingly in just about every Danish television production, will also join the cast.
While fans might lament the loss of Bodina, they can perhaps find solace in the fact that The Bridge’s third season will be “more Danish than ever” when it comes to the production crew.
The Bridge, which is a joint venture betweenDR and Swedish broadcaster SVT, became a cult hit across Scandinavia four years ago and also has a strong following in the UK and Germany. It has also inspired a short-lived American remake.
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