It would be quite a feat for the local paper [1] to interview him without realizing his name was fake!

Mads and Mikkelsen are both common Norwegian names (SSB has >4000 Mads and Mikkelsens individually), and unless his parents were big Refn enthusiasts I don't think they would have been aware of the actor...

[1] https://www.nordlys.no/mads-sin-drommereise-til-usa-spolert-...

I don't understand this logic. It's a common Scandinavian name. It doesn't have to be either or.

That's like saying a news story about an American was fake because his name was "Michael Jordan" or "David Robinson." Some names are really common.

But here's a link to a local newspaper from his part of Norway: https://www.nordlys.no/mads-sin-drommereise-til-usa-spolert-...

https://archive.ph/h3Uf4 couldn't capture it well but you can see has his name is referenced as Mads Mikkelsen.

“His name is John Smith? Big Fake warning bells!”