Dieter Laser
Dieter Laser (17 February 1942 – 29 February 2020) was a German actor.[1] Laser's career spanned over five decades, appearing in both German and English-language productions. He achieved recognition for his lead role in the 2009 film The Human Centipede (First Sequence) and also starred in the third entry in 2015. On television, he had a recurring role on Lexx from 1998 to 2000.
Dieter Laser | |
|---|---|
 Laser at Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival, in April 2010 | |
| Born | 17 February 1942 |
| Died | 29 February 2020 (aged 78) |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1968–2020 |
Life and career
Laser was born in Kiel, Germany. He was known to English speaking audiences for his roles as Mantrid in Lexx,[2] Prof. Otto Blaettchen in The Ogre, Dr. Josef Heiter in The Human Centipede (First Sequence) and Bill Boss in The Human Centipede 3 (Final Sequence)
In 1975, he was awarded the German Film Award in Gold in the category of Best Actor for his title role in John Glückstadt.
During the filming of The Human Centipede, many crew members and leading actors described Laser as being a method actor. On the days of filming he did not speak to the cast very often and would stay in character as much as he possibly could. Director Tom Six cast him after being impressed with Laser's work in some of his earlier films. For his performance, Laser won Best Actor at the Austin Fantastic Fest[3] and was nominated for the LA Scream Awards for Best Villain in 2010. He returned for the final installment of the franchise after refusing to play the part at first.[4]
Laser starred in the Estonian fantasy film November (shot November 2015). On January 15, 2016, due to appointment collisions in the planning of Sky Sharks, Dieter Laser and Fuse Box Films separated.[5]
Death
Dieter Laser died twelve days after his 78th birthday on 29 February 2020. His death was not announced until a message to his official Facebook page was posted on 9 April 2020.[6][7]
Selected filmography
- 1968: In the Jungle of Cities (Im Dickicht der Städte), as Collie Couch alias "The Pavian"
- 1973: Desaster, as Alf Harden
- 1974: Ermittlungen gegen Unbekannt, as Günter Riegand
- 1974-1976: Das Blaue Palais (TV-series), as Enrico Polazzo
- 1975: John Glückstadt, as John Glückstadt
- 1975: The Lost Honour of Katharina Blum, as Werner Toetges
- 1975: Die letzten Ferien, as Miguel
- 1976: The Elixirs of the Devil, as Medardus
- 1977: Operation Ganymed, as Don
- 1978: Germany in Autumn
- 1978: The Glass Cell (Oscar nominated: Best Foreign Language Film), as David Reinald
- 1982: Wir (based on We, the 1921 Russian novel by Yevgeny Zamyatin)
- 1986: Väter und Söhne – Eine deutsche Tragödie (mini series), as Friedrich Deutz
- 1990: The Man Inside, as Leonard Schroeter
- 1991: Meeting Venus, as Hans von Binder
- 1993: Kaspar Hauser, as Ludwig I. von Bayern
- 1996: Conversation with the Beast, as Peter Hollsten
- 1996: The Ogre, as Prof. Otto Blaettchen
- 1997: Shanghai 1937 (Hotel Shanghai), as Dr. Hain
- 2002: Big Girls Don't Cry, as Mr. Winter
- 2002: Fuhrer Ex, as Eduard Kellermann
- 2003: Baltic Storm, as Gehrig
- 2006: Ich bin die Andere, as Bruno
- 2009: The Human Centipede (First Sequence), as Dr. Josef Heiter
- 2015: The Human Centipede 3 (Final Sequence), as Bill Boss
- 2017: November, as Baron
References
- "Movies" – via NYTimes.com.
- Cheetham, Jamie. "Lexx: Cast". www.lexxdomain.com.
- "Fantastic Fest Thrills Up Prize Winners". Indiewire.
- "Director Tom Six's company threatens to sue star Dieter Laser". Entertainment Weekly.
- "Dieter Laser on Centipedes, Sky Sharks and Jesus' Blood - Interview with the man behind Bill Boss and Dr. Heiter". screen/read.
- RIP DIETER LASER: HUMAN CENTIPEDE ACTOR HAS PASSED AWAY
- [R.I.P. ‘The Human Centipede’ Star Dieter Laser Has Passed Away]
External links
Authority control  |
|---|