Max von Sydow

Lore & Background

Von Sydow was first noticed internationally for playing the 14th-century knight Antonius Block in Ingmar Bergman's The Seventh Seal (1957), which features iconic scenes of his character challenging Death to a game of chess. He appeared in eleven films directed by Bergman, including The Virgin Spring (1960), Through a Glass Darkly (1961), Winter Light (1963), Shame (1968), and The Touch (1971). Von Sydow made his American film debut as Jesus Christ in the Biblical epic film The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965) and went on to star in films such as Hawaii (1966), The Exorcist (1973), Three Days of the Condor (1975), Flash Gordon (1980), Conan the Barbarian (1982) and the James Bond adaptation Never Say Never Again (1983). He also appeared in supporting roles in Dune (1984), Hannah and Her Sisters (1986), Awakenings (1990), Minority Report (2002), The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007), Shutter Island (2010), Robin Hood (2010), and Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015). He portrayed the main antagonist Leland Gaunt (The Devil) in Needful Things (1993). In 2016, he portrayed Bloodraven in the HBO fantasy series Game of Thrones, for which he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series.

Reader's Guide

Von Sydow’s career spanned seven decades and over 150 films, establishing him as a versatile figure in European and American cinema. He was capable of embodying a wide range of characters, from stoic, contemplative protagonists to sardonic artists and menacing, often gleeful villains. He first gained international recognition for his role as a 14th-century knight who challenges Death to a game of chess in Ingmar Bergman’s *The Seventh Seal* (1957), a scene that became an iconic cinematic moment. He appeared in eleven Bergman films, including *Wild Strawberries*, *The Virgin Spring*, *Through a Glass Darkly*, *Winter Light*, *Shame*, and *The Touch*. His American film debut was as Jesus Christ in the biblical epic *The Greatest Story Ever Told* (1965). He later starred in major productions such as *The Exorcist* (1973), *Flash Gordon* (1980), and the James Bond film *Never Say Never Again* (1983). He also played supporting roles in *Dune* (1984), *Minority Report* (2002), and *Star Wars: The Force Awakens* (2015). For his performance in *Pelle the Conqueror* (1987), he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor, and he earned a second nomination for Best Supporting Actor for *Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close* (2011). He portrayed the main antagonist in *Needful Things* (1993) and later played Bloodraven in the HBO series *Game of Thrones*, earning a Primetime Emmy Award nomination. His contributions were recognized with honors from the Cannes and Venice Film Festivals, and he was made a Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres and a Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur.

Did You Know?

• Von Sydow was originally expected to pursue a career in law before becoming interested in acting after seeing a production of A Midsummer Night's Dream.
• He refused the opportunity to play the title role for Dr. No (1962) and Captain von Trapp in The Sound of Music (1965).
• Von Sydow was raised as a Lutheran but became an agnostic in the 1970s.