Two of the best characters in Season 1 of The Umbrella Academy were Cha-Cha and Hazel, two assassins sent by The Commission to stop Number Five from altering the timeline.
These characters could not return to Umbrella Academy Season 2 for two reasons. First, Cha-Cha, played masterfully by Mary J. Blige, died in the first season. Second, Harlan (Cameron Britton) ended up falling in love with the coffee shop employee and quit to live a real life.
Season 2 saw them replaced by The Swedes, who showed up to try to kill all the members of The Umbrella Academy, as the team was sent back to the ’60s and had a chance to change history once again.
Here is everything you need to know about The Swedes.
Who are The Swedes in Umbrella Academy?
Just like Cha-Cha and Hazel, The Swedes worked directly for The Commission, sent out to make sure that no one messed with the timeline, mostly by assassinating anyone who tries.
The Swedes are three brothers, none of which speaks at all in the second season of The Umbrella Academy.
This means we don’t get the fun back-and-forth banter of Hazel and Cha-Cha, or the sociopathic ravings of Cha-Cha. However, The Swedes make up for it with their incredible deadpan comic timing and completely bizarre actions throughout the season.
They are three of the weirdest characters on the show, and while they are assassins who will kill anyone who gets in their way, including a beloved character in the first episode, their love for each other makes them somewhat endearing.
This is especially true as these assassin’s fates play out. Their pain is just a real as the pain by the heroes in The Umbrella Academy.
Who plays The Swedes in Umbrella Academy?
The leader of The Swedes, Axe, was played by Kris Holden-Reid. His brothers were Tom Sinclair as Oscar (the smaller one who dressed as a milkman) and Jason Bryden as Otto (the bigger one).
Tom Sinclair was last seen in 21 Brothers, his debut movie role. His character was known as Pte. Matheson.
Jason Bryden has been around since 2000 in various roles. In some fun trivia, he was actually in the pilot episode of Psych. He previously had a recurring role on Sports Talk Radio as Dave.
Kris Holden-Reid is the biggest name of the three. He had a large role in Underworld: Awakening as Quint and later played Eyvind in Vikings and Dyson Thornwood in Lost Girl.
The Umbrella Academy Season 2 is currently streaming on Netflix.