Biography
Jonas Åkerlund (born November 10, 1965) is a Swedish film and music video director, and drummer. He is best known for his stylish music videos, which are often mock forms of movie trailers and short films. His video for Madonna's song "Ray of Light" won a Grammy for Best Music Video, Short Form, and a record seven awards at 1998 MTV Video Music Awards, including the Video of the Year. He more recently directed the video for Britney Spears' 2011 single "Hold It Against Me".
Known For
Complete Filmography

Metallica Saved My Life
2025
Director, Producer, Writer
From Award-winning director Jonas Åkerlund, “Metallica Saved My Life” explores the world of Metallica through the lives of their fans—including the ba...

Billy Idol Should Be Dead
2025
Director, Producer
Punk legend turned pop sensation Billy Idol bares it all in this electrifying documentary, revealing his rise to fame, battle with addiction and trium...

Ghost: Rite Here Rite Now
2024
Producer
Whether you’re a devoted disciple looking to relive treasured memories of the GHOST live spectacle or among the curious uninitiated, RITE HERE RITE NO...

Madonna: The Celebration Tour in Rio
2024
Director
Madonna celebrates her four-decade career in a special concert for over 1.6 million people at the Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro.

DuEls
2024
Director

Polar
2019
Director
When a retiring assassin realizes that he is the target of a hit, he winds up back in the game going head to head with a gang of younger, ruthless kil...

Lords of Chaos
2018
Screenplay, Director
A teenager's quest to launch Norwegian Black Metal in Oslo in the 1990s results in a very violent outcome.

Double Dutchess: Seeing Double
2017
Director
A high-art, high-fashion showcase of a star's many personas-and a vivid reminder that our art, not our obstacles, ultimately defines us. Free, focused...

Rammstein: Paris
2017
Director
During the “Made in Germany” tour, Swedish director Jonas Åkerlund filmed two acclaimed Rammstein concerts in March 2012 – each for an audience of 17,...

Lemonade
2016
Director
The second "visual album" (a collection of short films) by Beyoncé, this time around she takes a piercing look at racial issues and feminist concepts ...

Roxette Diaries
2016
Director, Editor
Everything (and much more) happened to Roxette in the years 1986 and 1995. Hundreds of hours of footage were recorded during the magical years to capt...

Taylor Swift: The 1989 World Tour - Live
2015
Director
Filmed in front of 76,000 fans at the ANZ Stadium in Sydney, Australia, "The 1989 World Tour Live" captures Taylor Swift's entire performance while al...

Rammstein in Amerika
2015
as Self
The concert film celebrates the band’s legendary show in New York’s Madison Square Garden – Rammstein’s return to the US after a ten-year absence. In ...

Artistry/Technology
2015
as Self
The film gives an insight into the minds of leading creative figures of our time and their thoughts on the relationship between technology and creativ...

Ozzy Osbourne: Memoirs of a Madman
2014
Director
Memoirs of a Madman is a definitive visual two-disc DVD set which includes classic music videos, along with unreleased and out-of-print live performan...

On the Run Tour: Beyoncé and Jay-Z
2014
Director
Beyoncé and Jay Z perform live in Paris at Stade de France during their 2014 "On the Run Tour."

Beyoncé
2014
Director
Developed as a "visual album", Beyoncé's songs are accompanied by non-linear short films that illustrate the musical concepts conceived during product...

Leave the World Behind
2014
Executive Producer
A music documentary following the breakup of Swedish House Mafia and their subsequent One Last Tour. The largest electronic tour in history, selling o...

Paul McCartney: Live Kisses
2012
Director
On February 9 in the City of Angels, a few hours after the long awaited addition of Paul McCartney’s star to the Hollywood Walk of Fame, McCartney and...

Paul McCartney Live at Zócalo
2012
Director
It's hard to believe Paul McCartney - the mariachi-singing ex-Beatle - is turning 70 years-old next month. After a three-hour performance in front of ...

Small Apartments
2012
Director
When a clumsy deadbeat accidentally kills his landlord, he must do everything in his power to hide the body, only to find that the distractions of lus...

Hollywood Undead: Hear Me Now
2011
Director
The music video of the first single of the second album of Hollywood Undead.

Place (Ställe)
2009
Director
Place is a sensational dance film, especially created for world-famous dancers Mikhail Baryshnikov & Ana Laguna by an outstanding international team o...

Pussy
2009
Director
The Rammstein clip of Pussy

Horsemen
2009
Director
A recently widowed detective still grieving over his wife's death discovers a shocking connection between himself and the suspects in a serial killing...

Madonna: The Confessions Tour
2006
Director
Filmed in its entirety at London's Wembley Arena during her worldwide sold-out 25-city Confessions Tour (2006's top-grossing tour world-wide), this co...

I'm Going to Tell You a Secret
2005
Director, Editor
A documentary that follows Madonna on her 2004 Re-Invention World Tour.

Blondie: Good Boys
2003
Director
Filmed partly in black and white and partly in color, the video starts out in the style of an old silent film, with a title screen that presents the b...

Spun
2003
Editor, Director
Over the course of three days Ross, a college dropout addicted to crystal-meth, encounters a variety of oddball folks - including a stripper named Nik...

The Smashing Pumpkins - Greatest Hits Video Collection
2001
Director
Released alongside The Smashing Pumpkins greatest hits CD "Rotten Apples", this video collection comes with all of the Pumpkins music videos (excludin...

You Do the Best You Can
2001
as Self
Follows Roy Andersson around different film festivals as he tries to launch his new film "Songs from the Second Floor" mixed with interviews with fami...
Try
2000
Director, Writer, Editor
Short movie about a young, drug addicted couple.

Turn the Page
1999
Director, Writer
In this short film, Ginger Lynn Allen plays the night club stripper/prostitute who is trying to raise her 12 year old daughter. We see daily scenes fr...

The Prodigy: Smack My Bitch Up
1997
Director
Music video depicting a drug-and-alcohol-fueled night out through the eyes of a mostly-unseen character
The Hidden
1997
Director
Jonas Åkerlund of Bathory fame's first directorial short.

En film om Modstrilogin
N/A
Director, Editor
A documentary about Stefan Jarl's Mod-trilogy.
GG Allin: Live. Fast. Die.
N/A
Director
Allin was a cult and fringe figure in the 1980s punk scene who became notorious for his outrageous behavior at shows, notably defecating onstage and s...