Max von Sydow, the Swedish actor who made his name in a series of landmark films with Ingmar Bergman before progressing to international stardom, has died in France at the age of 90, reports The Guardian.
Sydow’s most iconic role was in Bergman’s The Seventh Seal (1957), in which he plays chess with Death. He also brought immense presence and gravity to roles such as Jesus Christ in The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965), a doomed priest in William Friedkin’s The Exorcist, and an intellectually snobbish artist in Woody Allen‘s Hannah and Her Sisters (1986).
More recently, he appeared in Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2011), Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) and on Game of Thrones as the mystical Three-Eyed Raven.
The news was broken on Monday by his wife, the producer Catherine Brelet, who told Paris Match: “It is with a broken heart and with infinite sadness that we have the extreme pain of announcing the departure of Max von Sydow on 8 March 2020.”
Speaking to The Guardian, Thomas Vinterberg, who directed von Sydow in his final film, Kursk (2018), said, “For us Scandinavians Max is a legend.”
He continued: “I was lucky enough to work with him a couple of years back, and after his last shot, everyone stood up and applauded this warm and impressive man, continuously. When he left the set, it continued in the street.
“It was as if he was celebrated for his whole career, and it just went on and on. Both [co-star] Colin Firth and I were very moved by this, and it became the last time I saw him. It’s as if an era ends with Max. I will miss him.”
Tributes were paid to Von Sydow on Twitter, with Edgar Wright calling him a “god” who “changed the face of international cinema”.
Born into a wealthy family in Lund on the Swedish coast, Von Sydow studied at the country’s national drama school before meeting Bergman in 1955.
The pair initially worked together on theatrical productions, but rapidly made a series of cinematic landmarks that cemented both men’s careers.
The Seventh Seal was made in the same year as Wild Strawberries; Brink of Life, Rabies and The Magician followed in 1958. Other key collaborations included The Virgin Spring (1960) and Winter Light (1963).
The Greatest Story Ever Told was von Sydow’s first large-scale US production, but it was 1973’s The Exorcist – riffing off a lifetime playing wracked men of God – that catapulted Von Sydow to international acclaim.
The actor’s wackier side was showcased as Ming the Merciless in 1980’s Flash Gordon; his second foray into Hollywood fantasy was 1982’s Conan the Barbarian.
He worked with David Lynch on 1984’s Dune, and picked up considerable acclaim for a moving role in Woody Allen’s Hannah and Her Sisters (1986). The 1987 Swedish domestic drama Pelle the Conqueror earned him his first Oscar nomination, for best actor.