Alexander Skarsgård Talks Racing Prince Harry Across the South Pole for Charity

True Blood hunk dishes about braving frigid temperatures with the Prince of Wales to raise money for the troops

By Josh Grossberg, Alicia Quarles Sep 13, 2013 8:04 PMTags
Watch: Alexander Skarsgard Talks Prince Harry Race

He may play a sexy vampire on TV who enjoys warm blood, but Alexander Skarsgård is willing to suffer through a cold spell for a good cause. Make that a long cold spell.

E! News caught up with the True Blood hottie at the Calvin Klein Fashion Week party in New York Thursday night and asked him about his just-announced race with Prince Harry across Antarctica as part of the Walking With the Wounded South Pole Allied Challenge.

Needless to say, Skarsgård was thrilled by the prospect of going up against the royal.

"I'm part of the U.S. team and I was just honored when they asked me. It's called Walking With the Wounded, the charity," the 37-year-old actor told E! News. "We're gonna ski to the South Pole with three teams with four wounded soldiers on each team—a British team with Prince Harry and Dominic West from The Wire is with The Commonwealth [Canadian-Australian] Team and I'm with the Americans."

The competition will see the three groups embark on a 208-mile trek across the frozen continent that will take place over a month during Antarctica's summer—winter here in the U.S. But it's no picnic as they'll face along with below-zero temperatures, blizzards and dangerous ravines as they make their way across a harsh, icy landscape.

But given that he's from Sweden, not to mention a former marine in that country (as well as having played a convincing soldier in HBO's Generation Kill), it shouldn't go too badly for Skarsgård who added that he was just happy to be able to help raise money for military charities.

Getty Images; startraksphoto

"I had an opportunity to meet [his teammates] for the first time last week in California. Two guys and two girls. Amazing, amazing people. I'm really honored," he said.

While the HBO star is already hard at work training for the journey, it was announced today that Prince Harry will attend a reception at the Royal Society in London on Sept. 26 for MapAction.

Prince William's younger brother is a patron of the NGO, which specializes in providing mapping for humanitarian emergencies, and the event will help attract new donors to aid MapAction's long-term mission.

"Prince Harry's patronage of MapAction is a highly valuable contribution for an organisation of our size. We are grateful to Prince Harry for the generosity displayed through his ongoing commitment to MapAction's work," said MapAction chief executive Liz Hughes.