Klaus Kinski
Acting
1926-10-18
Klaus Kinski (German: [klaʊs ˈkɪnski]; born Klaus Günter Karl Nakszynski 18 October 1926 – 23 November 1991) was a German actor. Equally renowned for his intense performance style and his notoriously eccentric and volatile personality off-screen, he appeared in over 130 film roles in a career that spanned 40 years, from 1948 to 1988. He is best known for starring in five films directed by Werner Herzog from 1972 to 1987 (Aguirre, the Wrath of God; Nosferatu the Vampyre; Woyzeck; Fitzcarraldo; and Cobra Verde), who would later chronicle their tumultuous relationship in the documentary My Best Fiend. Kinski's roles spanned multiple genres, languages, and nationalities, including Spaghetti Westerns, horror films, war films, dramas, and Edgar Wallace krimi films. His infamy was elevated by a number of eccentric creative endeavors, including a one-man show based on the life of Jesus Christ, a biopic of violinist Niccolò Paganini directed by and starring himself, and over twenty spoken word albums. Kinski was prone to emotional and often violent outbursts aimed at his directors and fellow cast members, issues complicated by a history of mental illness. Herzog described him as "one of the greatest actors of the century, but also a monster and a great pestilence." Posthumously, he was accused of having physically and sexually abused his daughters Pola and Nastassja. His notoriety and prolific output have developed into a widespread cult following and a reputation as a popular icon. Description above from the Wikipedia article Klaus Kinski, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Filmography
TheatersAl borde del abismo: la aventura peruana de Werner Herzog
2026 · Movie
Othelo The Great
2024 · Movie
Gegen das Schweigen - Machtmissbrauch bei Theater und Film
2024 · Movie
Nosferatu: A Film Like a Vampire
2022 · Movie
Django & Django: Sergio Corbucci Unchained
2021 · Movie
The Extravagant Little Life of Jean-Claude D. Dreyfus
2021 · Movie
Hannelore Elsner: More Than One Life
2021 · Movie
AGFA Mystery Mixtape #2: Later in L.A.
2020 · Movie
The AGFA Mystery Mixtape Vault
2020 · Movie
Alain Delon, l'ombre au tableau
2019 · Movie
Filming Silenzio
2017 · Movie
FantastiCozzi
2016 · Movie
Fifty Shades of Erotica
2015 · Movie
Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films
2014 · Movie
Peter Baumgartner, Filmkameramann
2014 · Movie
In Free Fall
2010 · Movie
Jesus Christ Saviour
2008 · Movie
Beloved Count
2007 · Movie
The Spaghetti West
2005 · Movie
The Western World of Ferdinando Baldi
2005 · Movie
Kinski rigando Paganini
2003 · Movie
Whiteface
2002 · Movie
Klaus Kinski: I'm not an actor
2000 · Movie
My Best Fiend
1999 · Movie
Please Kill Mr. Kinski
1999 · Movie
Sternstunde Kunst
1998 · Series
Storyville
1997 · Series
Otto – The Series
1995 · Series
Dracula: A Cinematic Scrapbook
1991 · Movie
Paganini
1990 · Movie
White Hunter
1990 · Movie
Nosferatu in Venice
1988 · Movie
Cobra Verde
1987 · Movie
Timestalkers
1987 · Movie
Location Africa
1987 · Movie
Crawlspace
1986 · Movie
Portrait: Werner Herzog
1986 · Movie
Revenge of the Stolen Stars
1986 · Movie
Star Knight
1985 · Movie
Commando Leopard
1985 · Movie
Creature
1985 · Movie
Sonntagsgespräch
1985 · Series
Zeit zu zweit
1985 · Series
The Little Drummer Girl
1984 · Movie
Code Name: Wild Geese
1984 · Movie
Beauty and the Beast
1984 · Movie
The Secret Diary of Sigmund Freud
1984 · Movie
The Hitchhiker
1983 · Series
Diary
1983 · Movie
Android
1982 · Movie
Burden of Dreams
1982 · Movie
Faerie Tale Theatre
1982 · Series
The Soldier
1982 · Movie
Na sowas!
1982 · Series
Fitzcarraldo
1982 · Movie
Venom
1981 · Movie
Love & Money
1981 · Movie
Fruits of Passion
1981 · Movie
Buddy Buddy
1981 · Movie
The Child Woman
1980 · Movie
Schizoid
1980 · Movie
Haine
1980 · Movie
The Making of 'Nosferatu'
1979 · Movie
Woyzeck
1979 · Movie
Zoo zéro
1979 · Movie
I Am My Films: A Portrait of Werner Herzog
1979 · Movie
NDR Talk Show
1979 · Series
Nosferatu the Vampyre
1979 · Movie
The Song of Roland
1978 · Movie
Ciné regards
1978 · Series
Death of a Corrupt Man
1977 · Movie
Operation Thunderbolt
1977 · Movie
Madame Claude
1977 · Movie
Auf los geht's los
1977 · Series
Golden Night
1976 · Movie
Jack the Ripper
1976 · Movie
The Net
1975 · Movie
A Genius, Two Friends, and an Idiot
1975 · Movie
Lifespan
1975 · Movie
Return of Shanghai Joe
1975 · Movie
That Most Important Thing: Love
1975 · Movie
Footprints on the Moon
1975 · Movie
Les Rendez-vous du dimanche
1975 · Series
Spécial cinéma
1974 · Series
Heroes in Hell
1974 · Movie
Lover of the Monster
1974 · Movie
The Hand That Feeds the Dead
1974 · Movie
Am laufenden Band
1974 · Series
The Fighting Fist of Shanghai Joe
1973 · Movie
Death Smiles on a Murderer
1973 · Movie
Je später der Abend
1973 · Series
The Bloody Hands of the Law
1973 · Movie
Aguirre, the Wrath of God
1972 · Movie
A Noose Is Waiting for You Trinity
1972 · Movie
Black Killer
1971 · Movie
Eye of the Spider
1971 · Movie
The Price of Death
1971 · Movie
Web of the Spider
1971 · Movie
Shoot the Living and Pray for the Dead
1971 · Movie
Vengeance Is a Dish Served Cold
1971 · Movie
Slaughter Hotel
1971 · Movie
His Name Was King
1971 · Movie
Adios Compañeros
1971 · Movie
Coffin Full of Dollars
1971 · Movie
The Beast
1970 · Movie
Churchill's Leopards
1970 · Movie
The Night of the Assassin
1970 · Movie
Only the Cool
1970 · Movie
Count Dracula
1970 · Movie
And God Said to Cain
1970 · Movie
How Did a Nice Girl Like You Get Into This Business?
1970 · Movie
I Am Sartana Your Angel of Death
1969 · Movie
Venus in Furs
1969 · Movie
Salt in the Wound
1969 · Movie
Gangster's Law
1969 · Movie
Double Face
1969 · Movie
Marquis de Sade: Justine
1969 · Movie
Five for Hell
1969 · Movie
The Great Silence
1968 · Movie
The Bastard
1968 · Movie
The Vatican Affair
1968 · Movie
Twice a Judas
1968 · Movie
If You Meet Sartana Pray for Your Death
1968 · Movie
Coplan Saves His Skin
1968 · Movie
Psychopath
1968 · Movie
The Ruthless Four
1968 · Movie
Western, Italian Style
1968 · Movie
Man, Pride and Vengeance
1967 · Movie
Grand Slam
1967 · Movie
Five Golden Dragons
1967 · Movie
The Million Eyes of Sumuru
1967 · Movie
Creature with the Blue Hand
1967 · Movie
A Bullet for the General
1967 · Movie
Target for Killing
1966 · Movie
Where Are You Taking That Woman
1966 · Movie
Our Man in Marrakesh
1966 · Movie
Circus of Fear
1966 · Movie
Doctor Zhivago
1965 · Movie
For a Few Dollars More
1965 · Movie
That Man in Istanbul
1965 · Movie
The Dirty Game
1965 · Movie
Again the Ringer
1965 · Movie
The Pleasure Girls
1965 · Movie
Traitor's Gate
1964 · Movie
Secret of the Chinese Carnation
1964 · Movie
Last of the Renegades
1964 · Movie
The Curse of the Hidden Vault
1964 · Movie
Mark of the Tortoise
1964 · Movie
Die Drehscheibe
1964 · Series
The Last Ride to Santa Cruz
1964 · Movie
Piccadilly Zero Hour 12
1963 · Movie
The Secret of the Black Widow
1963 · Movie
The Mystery of the Indian Temple
1963 · Movie
Kali-Yug, Goddess of Vengeance
1963 · Movie
Scotland Yard Hunts Dr. Mabuse
1963 · Movie
The Indian Scarf
1963 · Movie
The Black Abbot
1963 · Movie
The Black Cobra
1963 · Movie
The Squeaker
1963 · Movie
Weltspiegel
1963 · Series
Die Mondvögel
1963 · Movie
The Inn on the River
1962 · Movie
The Door with Seven Locks
1962 · Movie
The Red Pastures
1962 · Movie
The Counterfeit Traitor
1962 · Movie
The Secret of the Red Orchid
1962 · Movie
The Strange Countess
1961 · Movie
Die Kurve
1961 · Movie
The Devil's Daffodil
1961 · Movie
Bankraub in der Rue Latour
1961 · Movie
Dead Eyes of London
1961 · Movie
The Avenger
1960 · Movie
A Time to Love and a Time to Die
1958 · Movie
Corinna Darling
1956 · Movie
Waldwinter
1956 · Movie
Hanussen
1955 · Movie
Sarajevo
1955 · Movie
Children, Mother, and the General
1955 · Movie
Ludwig II
1955 · Movie
Fear
1954 · Movie
Decision Before Dawn
1951 · Movie
German Film Award
1951 · Series
Morituri
1948 · Movie