Per Oscarsson, Swedish Star Of “The Girl Who Played With Fire,” Feared Dead After NYE Blaze

Swedish star Per Oscarsson is missing and feared dead after a New Year’s Weekend blaze at his rural home in Sweden, investigators say.

The remains of one person were found on Sunday in the ashes of the house and are probably those of the 83-year-old actor or his wife, 67-year-old Kia Ostling, according to police spokesman Jan Strommegard. The couple was reported missing by their relatives who say both were home when the fire destroyed the house early Friday.

The building, located in a remote area outside the small town of Skara in southwest Sweden, had burned to the ground. Only the chimney was left when firefighters arrived at the scene.

Oscarsson won the Best Actor prize at the 1966 Cannes Film Festival for his role as a starving writer in the movie Hunger. During his career he starred in more than 100 Swedish films and TV series. Most recently, he appeared in the 2006 Swedish film The Girl Who Played With Fire, based on Stieg Larsson’s popular book of the same name.