‘Polar’ Cast: Who’s Who in Netflix’s Hitman Movie, From Sindy to the Black Kaiser

The star of the film, Mads Mikkelsen plays a legendary hitman codenamed Black Kaiser. He’s 14 days shy of retirement and plans on spending the rest of his days in the middle of nowhere–but obviously things don’t go according to plan. Mikkelsen is most known for playing Dr. Hannibal Lecter in the acclaimed TV series Hannibal. After that he’s become one of the main go-to guys for franchises, appearing in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story as Death Star architect Galen Erso and in Marvel’s Doctor Strange as the big bad Kaecilius.

Duncan’s retirement plans include spending time with a young protege named Camille, although their relationship gets a lot more complicated as the movie continues and things get worse. In just the past few months, Vanessa Hudgens has gone from a Disney star to a Netflix star. She made her big debut playing Gabriella Montez in the High School Musical trilogy. Most recently she’s become a Netflix mainstay, appearing in the Christmas romcom The Princess Switch just a few months ago; that movie is the polar opposite of Polar. 2019’s already a big year for Hudgens. In addition to Polar, she also starred in Fox’s Rent: Live.

Vivian, one of Mr. Blut’s lead assassins and Ducan’s ex-handler, spearheads a mission to take Duncan out before he reaches his retirement payout. Katheryn Winnick has become a fan favorite performer thanks to her lead role portraying Lagertha on the History Channel drama Vikings. Prior to that she had a recurring role on Bones as Hannah Burley. As far as films go, Winnick’s popped up in The Dark Tower, The Art of the Steal, and Stand Up Guys.

Mr. Blut runs a ring of assassins, although he does so rather sadistically (even for his line of work). Instead of paying the pensions owed to his assassins when they retire, he has them killed. British comedian Matt Lucas chews scenery as Mr. Blut. Lucas has had a lengthy career across the pond, appearing in numerous panel shows and creating the popular sketch comedy series Little Britain. He’ll be familiar to Doctor Who fans as Nardole, and he played both Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum in Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland films.

One of Mr. Blut’s many assassins, Alexei is part of the team that tracks down Duncan. Josh Cruddas actually works steadily as a short film composer in Canada, with over a dozen credits to his name. He does that while also working as an actor, popping up in a recurring role on Cardinal, as well as smaller parts on Reign and 11.22.63.

Ruby O. Fee plays Sindy (not Cindy), the lethal seductress amongst Mr. Blut’s team. As we’ve covered elsewhere, Ruby O. Fee has been working super hard over in Germany, appearing in a ton of TV shows over the past few years. Polar marks her big English language debut, and odds are we’ll be seeing more of her over here in the future.

Many viewers will first meet Anthony Grant as Facundo, one of Mr. Blut’s most skilled hitmen. Polar watchers that have also seen Star Trek: Discovery are familiar with Grant’s work, although you won’t recognize him. Grant played Klingon communications officer Er’Toom in the series, wearing heavy prosthetic makeup. Prior to that, Grant popped up on shows like The Expanse, Hemlock Grove, and Lost Girl.

Forget what you see in Polar, because Robert Maillet has legit real-life brawling credentials. Maillet is most known for his career as a professional wrestler in the WWF, where he wrestled under the name Kurrgan. After moving on from wrestling, he’s put his physical prowess to work in roles in Zack Snyder’s 300 as the Uber-Immortal, Lt. Kaidonovsky in Pacific Rim, the Executioner in Hercules, and Sluggo in Deadpool 2.

Fei Ren stars as the scene-stealing assassin Hilde in Polar. Prior to Polar, Ren could be seen on the Canadian TV shows The Romeo Section and This Blows. Her first acting credits were in unnamed roles on Minority Report, Lucifer, and The Magicians just a few years ago. With a breakout role in Polar, Ren’s star is rising fast.

Like a not insignificant chunk of Polar’s cast, Inga Cadranel has been a working actor in Canada for the past two decades. Some of those credits have become hits in the United States, meaning Americans may know her most from her role as Alicia Reynaud on Dark Matter, Detective Deangelis on Orphan Black, or Aife on Lost Girl. And what’s a Canada list of credits without Degrassi? Cadranel played Rachel Rhodes in two episodes.

Pedro Miguel Arce’s character Pedro doesn’t exactly have the best time in Polar (no spoilers). Over the past few years, Arce has popped up on Syfy’s Incorporated, FX’s The Strain, and Netflix’s The Ballad of Hugo Sanchez. He also played Danny Santos in Season 2 of True Detective, in case you stuck with the show through its sophomore season.

Johnny Knoxville’s Michael Green is the pretty much the first guy you meet in Polar. This retired hitman thinks he’s got it made, but Mr. Blut’s brutes have something else planned. You know who Johnny Knoxville is, most likely from his stint as the daredevil star of MTV’s “dear god don’t try this at home” show Jackass. Since then he’s launched a steady movie career, appearing in Walking Tall, Lords of Dogtown, The Dukes of Hazzard, a number of Jackass films (including Bad Grandpa), voicing Leonardo in the 2014 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie, and writing and starring in 2018’s Action Point.

A relative newcomer to acting, Polar gives Anastasia Marinina her biggest exposure to date. Prior to starring in the Netflix hitmen movie, she appeared on Reign and Hemlock Grove, as well as NBC’s Taken.

Who could possibly play Duncan’s ex-mentor? What actor has the kind of clout that outdoes everything Mads Mikkelsen brings to the table? Richard Dreyfuss, that’s who. A true living legend of cinema, Dreyfuss is most known for his collaborations with Steven Spielberg in the ’70s, Jaws and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. He also starred in Mr. Holland’s Opus, won the Best Actor Oscar for The Goodbye Girl, and has popped up in everything from Piranha 3D and Book Club to The American President and Postcards from the Edge. He’s Richard Dreyfuss!

Stream Polar on Netflix