Mario Adorf

Biography

Mario Adorf was a German actor who became one of European cinema's leading character players over a career that ran from 1954 to 2023 and took in more than 200 film and television productions. Born in Zurich and raised in Germany, he trained at the Otto Falckenberg School in Munich before joining the Munich Kammerspiele. His breakthrough came in 1957 as the suspected murderer in Robert Siodmak's The Devil Strikes at Night, and he went on to specialize in villains who could seem charismatic or sympathetic. His credits ranged from Spaghetti Westerns and Karl May adaptations to Caliber 9 (1972), The Italian Connection (1972), Major Dundee (1965), Fedora (1978) and Lola (1981). He appeared in Volker Schlöndorff's The Lost Honour of Katharina Blum (1975) and The Tin Drum (1979), and in the television serials Smiley's People and Kir Royal. He won two German Film Awards and an honorary prize for his contributions to German cinema.

95years old at death

Born September 8, 1930Zurich
Died April 8, 20268th arrondissement of Paris
Star sign: VirgoThe sign runs August 23 to September 22
Mario Matteo Adorf (birth name)

Movie Career

Films: 21
Career span: 34 years1963 to 1997

Genres

Drama43%, 9 films
Crime33%, 7 films
Adventure24%, 5 films
Action19%, 4 films
Mystery19%, 4 films

First and latest

Did you know?!

A role that slipped away
Mario Adorf turned down the role of General Mapache in Sam Peckinpah's The Wild Bunch because he thought the character was too violent, having already worked with Peckinpah on Major Dundee.
A role that slipped away
Mario Adorf regretted declining roles in Billy Wilder's One, Two, Three and Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather, but later worked with Wilder on Fedora as a hotel manager.
Languages
In 1996, Mario Adorf dubbed the German voice for Draco in the film Dragonheart, a character played by Sean Connery.
Early training
Mario Adorf enrolled at the Otto Falckenberg School of the Performing Arts in Munich after working backstage at the Schauspielhaus Zürich, and upon graduating joined the Munich Kammerspiele repertory company.

Mario Adorf movies on Netflix

Smilla's Sense of Snow1997IMDb rating 6.3as Capt. Sigmund Lukas
Felidae1994IMDb rating 7.0as Blaubart (voice)
The Cave of the Golden Rose 21992IMDb rating 7.0as The King
The Cave of the Golden Rose1991IMDb rating 7.4as The King
Momo1986IMDb rating 6.5as Nicola
The Holcroft Covenant1985IMDb rating 5.7as Erich Kessler / Jürgen Mass
Lola1981IMDb rating 7.4as Schuckert
Fedora1978IMDb rating 6.8as Corfu Hotel Manager
The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum1975IMDb rating 7.3as Kommissar Beizmenne
Caliber 91972IMDb rating 7.4as Rocco Musco
The Italian Connection1972IMDb rating 7.1as Luca Canali
The Bird with the Crystal Plumage1970IMDb rating 7.1as Berto Consalvi
The Red Tent1969IMDb rating 6.8as Biagi, Radio Operator
The Specialists1969IMDb rating 6.3as El Diablo
A Sky Full of Stars for a Roof1968IMDb rating 5.9as Harry
The Treasure of San Gennaro1966IMDb rating 6.9as Sciascillo
I Knew Her Well1965IMDb rating 7.6as Emilio Ricci, aka Bietolone
Major Dundee1965IMDb rating 6.7as Sergeant Gomez
Ten Little Indians1965IMDb rating 6.6as Joseph Grohmann
Station Six-Sahara1963IMDb rating 6.5as Santos
Winnetou 1: Apache Gold1963IMDb rating 6.8as Frederick Santer

Best known for

The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.

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Felidae1994 Action, Animation, Dramaas Blaubartvoice
IMDb rating 7.06.0K votes
Lola1981 Drama, Romanceas Schuckert
IMDb rating 7.47.5K votes
The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum1975as Kommissar Beizmenne
IMDb rating 7.35.4K votes
The Bird with the Crystal Plumage1970as Berto Consalvi
IMDb rating 7.127K votes
The Italian Connection1972as Luca Canali
IMDb rating 7.13.4K votes
Caliber 91972as Rocco Musco
IMDb rating 7.45.6K votes
Winnetou 1: Apache Gold1963as Frederick Santer
IMDb rating 6.85.2K votes
I Knew Her Well1965as Emilio Ricci, aka Bietolone
IMDb rating 7.63.9K votes

Most often with

Fernando Di Leo directed two of these films, Lamberto Bava two. Two actors appear in three of them each. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.

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Omero Capanna

Giuseppe Castellano

Richard Harris

Armin Mueller-Stahl

Senta Berger

Giovanni Ivan Scratuglia

Fernando Di LeoDirector, 2 films

Lamberto BavaDirector, 2 films

Films together

Omero Capanna3 films together, 1968 to 1972
Omero Capanna's page
- Caliber 91972IMDb rating 7.4Adorf as Rocco MuscoCapanna as Couriers Supervisor
- The Italian Connection1972IMDb rating 7.1Adorf as Luca CanaliCapanna as Don Vito Henchman
- A Sky Full of Stars for a Roof1968IMDb rating 5.9Adorf as Harry
Giuseppe Castellano3 films together, 1970 to 1972
Giuseppe Castellano's page
- Caliber 91972IMDb rating 7.4Adorf as Rocco MuscoCastellano as Nicola
- The Italian Connection1972IMDb rating 7.1Adorf as Luca CanaliCastellano as Garagaz
- The Bird with the Crystal Plumage1970IMDb rating 7.1Adorf as Berto ConsalviCastellano as Monti
Richard Harris2 films together, 1965 to 1997
Richard Harris's page
- Smilla's Sense of Snow1997IMDb rating 6.3Adorf as Capt. Sigmund LukasHarris as Dr. Andreas Tork
- Major Dundee1965IMDb rating 6.7Adorf as Sergeant GomezHarris as Captain Benjamin Tyreen
Armin Mueller-Stahl2 films together, 1981 to 1986
Armin Mueller-Stahl's page
- Momo1986IMDb rating 6.5Adorf as NicolaMueller-Stahl as Chef der Grauen Männer
- Lola1981IMDb rating 7.4Adorf as SchuckertMueller-Stahl as Von Bohm
Senta Berger2 films together, 1965 to 1966
Senta Berger's page
- The Treasure of San Gennaro1966IMDb rating 6.9Adorf as SciascilloBerger as Maggie
- Major Dundee1965IMDb rating 6.7Adorf as Sergeant GomezBerger as Teresa Santiago
Giovanni Ivan Scratuglia2 films together, 1966 to 1968
Giovanni Ivan Scratuglia's page
- A Sky Full of Stars for a Roof1968IMDb rating 5.9Adorf as Harry
- The Treasure of San Gennaro1966IMDb rating 6.9Adorf as Sciascillo
Fernando Di LeoDirector, 2 films, 1972
- Caliber 91972IMDb rating 7.4Adorf as Rocco Musco
- The Italian Connection1972IMDb rating 7.1Adorf as Luca Canali
Lamberto BavaDirector, 2 films, 1991 to 1992
All films by Lamberto Bava
- The Cave of the Golden Rose 21992IMDb rating 7.0Adorf as The King
- The Cave of the Golden Rose1991IMDb rating 7.4Adorf as The King
Also two films together12 more actors
- Franco FabriziThe Italian Connection (1972) and I Knew Her Well (1965)
- Nino ManfrediThe Treasure of San Gennaro (1966) and I Knew Her Well (1965)
- Kim Rossi StuartThe Cave of the Golden Rose 2 (1992) and The Cave of the Golden Rose (1991)
- Ralf WolterThe Treasure of San Gennaro (1966) and Winnetou 1: Apache Gold (1963)
- Gastone MoschinCaliber 9 (1972) and The Specialists (1969)
- Enrico Maria SalernoThe Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970) and I Knew Her Well (1965)
- Giulio BaraghiniCaliber 9 (1972) and The Italian Connection (1972)
- Alessandra MartinesThe Cave of the Golden Rose 2 (1992) and The Cave of the Golden Rose (1991)
- Katerina BrozováThe Cave of the Golden Rose 2 (1992) and The Cave of the Golden Rose (1991)
- Stefano DavanzatiThe Cave of the Golden Rose 2 (1992) and The Cave of the Golden Rose (1991)
- Stanislava BartosováThe Cave of the Golden Rose 2 (1992) and The Cave of the Golden Rose (1991)
- Tomás ValíkThe Cave of the Golden Rose 2 (1992) and The Cave of the Golden Rose (1991)
When several people share the same number of films, the ones with the most films on Netflix are in the chart.

Awards

Twelve awards and honors from 1994 to 2019, one of them major.

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Mario Adorf's awards and nominations, grouped by award
Year	Award	Film	Result
Berlin Film Festival
1996	Berliner Bär		Won
Other honors
2019	Herbert Strate Award		Won
2009	Orden wider den tierischen Ernst		Won
2005	Order of Merit of Rhineland-Palatinate		Won
2001	Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany		Won
2001	Pro meritis scientiae et litterarum		Won
1997	Order of Karl Valentin		Won
1996	Bavarian TV Awards	Der Schattenmann	Won
1996	Carl Zuckmayer Medal		Won
1996	Golden Schlitzohr		Won
1994	Grimme-Preis		Won
	Bavarian Order of Merit		Won

Online

Official profiles and reference pages.

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