# Max Riemelt

Max Riemelt (born 7 January 1984) is a German actor. He is known internationally for playing Wolfgang Bogdanow in the Netflix series Sense8. In Germany, he is known for his many appearances on television and in films, including a leading role in the 2023 series Bonn – Alte Freunde, neue Feinde. He has appeared in many productions directed by Dennis Gansel and Dominik Graf.

## Early life and education

Max Riemelt was born on 7 January 1984 in Mitte, East Berlin, which was in East Germany until he was six years old, and grew up in Berlin, Germany.

## Career

Riemelt's career began in Germany in 1997 at the age of 13, in the TV productions Eine Familie zum Küssen and Praxis Bülowbogen. The following year Riemelt played his first leading role in the ZDF Christmas series Zwei allein, directed by Matthias Steurer. He also had a cameo appearance in the video for the title song "Two of a Kind" by the Hamburg duo "R & B".
He starred in all of Dennis Gansel's feature films from Mädchen, Mädchen (2004) until The Fourth State (2012). In 2004 gained wide attention in Germany for his role in Gansel's World War II drama Before the Fall.
He starred in Dominik Graf's 2010 TV crime series In the Face of Crime (Im Angesicht des Verbrechens), and has collaborated numerous times with Graf as well as Dennis Gansel.
In 2013, he starred in the romance Free Fall, with Hanno Koffler, where he plays Kay, a police officer in training. The depicts a gay love story and has been compared to Brokeback Mountain.
From 2015 to 2018, he starred in The Wachowskis' Netflix series Sense8, playing Wolfgang Bogdanow, a German safe cracker. The first season received positive reviews from critics.
He starred in the 2017 psychological thriller Berlin Syndrome alongside Australian actress Teresa Palmer, which premiered at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. The film received generally favorable reviews, and both Palmer and Riemelt garnered praise for their performances.
In 2020, he joined the cast of The Matrix Resurrections.
In 2023 he played a leading role Bonn – Alte Freunde, neue Feinde, a political drama set in post-war West Germany in 1954.

## Awards

* 2004: Best Actor, Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, for Before the Fall
* 2006: Best Newcomer Actor, Bavarian Film Awards, for The Red Cockatoo [de]
* 2006: Best Performance by an Actor in the Marrakech International Film Festival Awards, for his role in The Red Cockatoo

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role |
| 2003 | Lottoschein ins Glück | Björn Michels |
| 2004 | Mädchen, Mädchen 2 – Loft oder Liebe | Flin |
| 2004 | Before the Fall | Friedrich Weimer |
| 2005 | Hallesche Kometen | Ingo |
| 2005 | Nachtasyl | Aljoscha |
| 2006 | The Red Cockatoo [de] | Siggi |
| 2006 | Der Untergang der Pamir [de] | Carl-Friedrich von Krempin |
| 2007 | GG 19 – Eine Reise durch Deutschland in 19 Artikeln [de] | Edgar |
| 2007 | An die Grenze [de] | Gefreiter Kerner |
| 2007 | Snipers Valley [fr] | Charly |
| 2008 | Up! Up! To the Sky | Arnold |
| 2008 | The Wave | Marco |
| 2008 | Run for Your Life! [de] | Andreas Neidrig |
| 2008 | Tausend Ozeane | Meikel |
| 2009 | 13 Semester | Momo |
| 2010 | We Are the Night | Tom |
| 2011 | A Family of Three [de] | Lars |
| 2011 | Schandmal – Der Tote im Berg [de] | Thomas Hafner |
| 2011 | Urban Explorer | Kris |
| 2011 | Playoff | Thomas |
| 2012 | The Fourth State | Dima |
| 2012 | Foreign Deployment [de] | Daniel Gerber |
| 2012 | Heiter bis Wolkig | Tim |
| 2012 | The German Friend | Friedrich Burg |
| 2012 | Forgotten [de] | Marcus |
| 2013 | Free Fall | Kay Engel |
| 2013 | Blutgeld | Ralf Seifert |
| 2013 | Der zweite Mann | Adrian Davids |
| 2014 | Elly Beinhorn: Solo Flight [de] | Bernd Rosemeyer |
| 2014 | Warsaw 44 | Johann Krauss |
| 2014 | To Life! [de] | Jonas |
| 2015 | Lichtgestalten | |
| 2015 | Sanctuary | Bruder Krapp |
| 2015 | Amnesia | Jo Gellert |
| 2015 | Storno: Todsicher versichert | Rupert Halmer |
| 2017 | Berlin Syndrome | Andi |
| 2018 | Head Burst | Markus |
| 2021 | The Matrix Resurrections | Shepherd |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1998 | Zwei allein | Max | |
| 2002 | Alphateam – Die Lebensretter im OP | Timo | 1 episode |
| 2003 | Wolffs Revier | Harald Bernhard | 1 episode |
| 2003 | Alarm für Cobra 11 – Die Autobahnpolizei | Marcel Freese | 1 episode |
| 2003 | In aller Freundschaft | Mirco Venske | 1 episode |
| 2004 | Sextasy | | Short film |
| 2004 | Balko | Ingo Grabowski | 1 episode |
| 2004 | Neuland | | Short film |
| 2005 | Feinde | Deutscher Soldat | Short film |
| 2005 | Videotagebuch von Dennis Gansel | Friedrich Weiemer / Himself | Short video |
| 2006 | Der Kriminalist | Michael Büssig | 1 episode |
| 2008 | Die Zigarrenkiste | Tjark Evers | Short film |
| 2008 | Die Schattenboxer | Boxer | Short film |
| 2010 | Sehsüchte: Underworld | Young Man | Short film |
| 2010 | Im Angesicht des Verbrechens | Marek Gorsky | 10 episodes |
| 2011 | Der Staatsanwalt | Markus Pohl | 1 episode |
| 2013 | Der letzte Bulle | Dennis Paschmann | 1 episode |
| 2015–2018 | Sense8 | Wolfgang Bogdanow | Main character |
| 2019 | Die Freundin meiner Mutter | Jan | TV film |
| 2019 | Der Schneegänger | Lutz Gehring | TV film |
| 2019 | World on Fire | Schmidt | Miniseries |
| 2023 | Bonn – Alte Freunde, neue Feinde | Wolfgang Berns | Miniseries |