Max von Sydow(1929-2020)
- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Director
Max von Sydow was born Carl Adolf von Sydow on April 10, 1929 in Lund, Skåne, Sweden, to a middle-class family. He was the son of Baroness Maria Margareta (Rappe), a teacher, and Carl Wilhelm von Sydow, an ethnologist and folklore professor. His surname traces back to his partial German ancestry.
When he was in high school, he and a few fellow students, includingYvonne Lombard,started a theatre club which encouraged his interest in acting. After conscription, he began to study at the Royal Dramatic Theatre's acting school (1948-1951), together withLars Ekborg,Margaretha KrookandIngrid Thulin.His first role was as Nils the crofter inAlf Sjöberg'sBara en mor (1949).After graduation, he worked at the city theatres in Norrköping and Malmö.
His work in the movies byIngmar Bergman(especiallyDet sjunde inseglet (1957),including the iconic scenes in which he plays chess with Death) made him well-known internationally, and he started to get offers from abroad. His career abroad began with him playing Jesus inThe Greatest Story Ever Told (1965);Hawaii (1966)andThe Quiller Memorandum (1966).Since then, his career includes very different kind of characters, like Karl Oskar Nilsson inUtvandrarna (1971);Father Lankester Merrin inThe Exorcist (1973);Joubert the assassin inThree Days of the Condor (1975),Emperor Ming inFlash Gordon (1980);the villain Ernst Stavro Blofeld in theNever Say Never Again (1983);Liet-Kynes inDune (1984)the artist Frederick inHannah and Her Sisters (1986);Lassefar inPelle erobreren (1987),for which he received his first Academy Award nomination; Dr. Peter Ingham inAwakenings (1990);Lamar Burgess inMinority Report (2002)and The Renter inExtremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2011),which earned him his second Academy Award nomination.
He became one of Sweden's most admired and professional actors, and is the only male Swedish actor to receive an Oscar nomination. He was nominated twice: forPelle erobreren (1987)in 1988 and forExtremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2011)in 2012. He received the Guldbagge Award for Best Director in his directing debut, the drama filmVed vejen (1988).In 2016, he joined the sixth season of the HBO seriesGame of Thrones (2011)as the Three-eyed Raven, which earned him his Primetime Emmy Award nomination.
Max von Sydow died on March 8, 2020, in Provence, France, and was survived by his wife Catherine Brelet and four children. He was 90.
When he was in high school, he and a few fellow students, includingYvonne Lombard,started a theatre club which encouraged his interest in acting. After conscription, he began to study at the Royal Dramatic Theatre's acting school (1948-1951), together withLars Ekborg,Margaretha KrookandIngrid Thulin.His first role was as Nils the crofter inAlf Sjöberg'sBara en mor (1949).After graduation, he worked at the city theatres in Norrköping and Malmö.
His work in the movies byIngmar Bergman(especiallyDet sjunde inseglet (1957),including the iconic scenes in which he plays chess with Death) made him well-known internationally, and he started to get offers from abroad. His career abroad began with him playing Jesus inThe Greatest Story Ever Told (1965);Hawaii (1966)andThe Quiller Memorandum (1966).Since then, his career includes very different kind of characters, like Karl Oskar Nilsson inUtvandrarna (1971);Father Lankester Merrin inThe Exorcist (1973);Joubert the assassin inThree Days of the Condor (1975),Emperor Ming inFlash Gordon (1980);the villain Ernst Stavro Blofeld in theNever Say Never Again (1983);Liet-Kynes inDune (1984)the artist Frederick inHannah and Her Sisters (1986);Lassefar inPelle erobreren (1987),for which he received his first Academy Award nomination; Dr. Peter Ingham inAwakenings (1990);Lamar Burgess inMinority Report (2002)and The Renter inExtremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2011),which earned him his second Academy Award nomination.
He became one of Sweden's most admired and professional actors, and is the only male Swedish actor to receive an Oscar nomination. He was nominated twice: forPelle erobreren (1987)in 1988 and forExtremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2011)in 2012. He received the Guldbagge Award for Best Director in his directing debut, the drama filmVed vejen (1988).In 2016, he joined the sixth season of the HBO seriesGame of Thrones (2011)as the Three-eyed Raven, which earned him his Primetime Emmy Award nomination.
Max von Sydow died on March 8, 2020, in Provence, France, and was survived by his wife Catherine Brelet and four children. He was 90.
Remembering Max von Sydow (1929-2020)
Remembering Max von Sydow (1929-2020)
Look back at photos fromThe Seventh Sealand more movies from Max von Sydow's legendary career.
