Matthias Schweighöfer

Matthias Schweighöfer (born 11 March 1981) is a German actor and filmmaker known for his work in several German and American film productions. He is best known for his role as Lieutenant Franz Herber in the 2008 film Valkyrie. In 2021, Schweighöfer appeared in the Netflix film Army of the Dead, directed by Zack Snyder, as Ludwig Dieter. He reprised his role in the prequel film, Army of Thieves, which he also directed.
Early life
Born in Anklam, Western Pomerania, Schweighöfer attended Berlin's renowned acting school Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts, but dropped out after one year. Nevertheless, the son of actors had already worked with established directors such as Peter Greenaway.
Career
His first role in a feature film was (1997), directed by Andreas Dresen. In the following years, he appeared in projects such as Soloalbum (2003), Off Beat (2004), Eight Miles High (2007) and Rabbit Without Ears. Schweighöfer portrayed Lieutenant Franz Herber in Valkyrie, a 2008 film dramatizing the failed 20 July assassination and political coup plot to kill Adolf Hitler. The international release of Valkyrie and the all-star cast (including Tom Cruise, Kenneth Branagh, Terence Stamp and Bill Nighy) not only allowed Schweighöfer to be recognized abroad, it provided an opportunity for him to be cast in other English speaking roles.
In 2009, Schweighöfer founded the fashion label German Garment with TV presenter Joko Winterscheidt.
In 2010, he made his debut as film director with the romantic comedy What a Man, followed in 2013 by his second movie . In 2017, he directed, produced and played the lead role in You Are Wanted, Amazon Studios' first non-English-language TV series.
In 2021, Schweighöfer appeared in the Netflix film Army of the Dead, directed by Zack Snyder, as Ludwig Dieter. He reprised his role in the prequel film, Army of Thieves, which he also directed.
In 2021/2022, he took on the role of real-life music producer Frank Farian in the biopic Girl You Know It's True about the scandalous pop duo Milli Vanilli, written and directed by Simon Verhoeven, produced by Wiedemann & Berg Film. The film is set to be released theatrically by Leonine in 2023.
In 2023, he portrayed physicist Werner Heisenberg in the Christopher Nolan biopic Oppenheimer.
Personal life
Between 2004 and 2012, Schweighöfer dated Ani Schromm, and they got together again in the summer of 2013. They have a daughter born in 2009 and a son born in 2014. Schweighöfer and Schromm later separated, and as of 2019 Schweighöfer has been in a relationship with his Army of Thieves co-star Ruby O. Fee. Schweighöfer lives in Berlin.
Awards
2000: German Television Prize – Promotional Award for the performance in
2002: Günter Strack TV Award – Best Young Actor for the performance in
2003: Golden Camera – "Curt Jürgens Memorial Camera" for best newcomer and performances in Friends of Friends &
2003: – For the performance in Friends of Friends
2003: New Faces Award – Best Actor
2004: Bavarian Film Award – Best Young Actor
2004: Baden-Baden TV and Film Festival – Special award for the outstanding performances in and Cold Spring
2005: Undine Award – Best Young Actor (TV) for the performance in The Young Schiller
2006: DIVA-Award – Best Actor for the performances in , The Young Schiller and Polly Blue Eyes
2007: Undine Award – Best Young Actor (feature film) for the performance in Eight Miles High
2007: Bambi Award – Film – National – Male
2009: Golden Camera – Best German Actor for the performance in The Author of Himself: The Life of Marcel Reich-Ranicki
2010: Jupiter Award – Best Male Actor (TV) for his performance in The Author of Himself: The Life of Marcel Reich-Ranicki
2011: GQ Man of the Year – Film National
Selected filmography
Director
Actor
1999: Dr. Stefan Frank, season 4, episode 10, als Ingo
2000: , as Ben Simon
2000: Trust Me, as Speedy
2001: Babykram ist Männersache, as Malte
2001: (Herz im Kopf), as Dirk
2002: (Nachts im Park), as Hansen
2002: (TV film), as Gregor
2002: FeardotCom, as Dieter Schrader
2003: Soloalbum, as Ben
2003: , as Felix
2004: Baal (TV film), as Baal
2004: (TV film), as Ben
2004: Off Beat, as Crash
2004: Gold – The Tulse Luper Suitcases
2005: (TV film), as
2005: , as Ronny Helske
2006: Lulu (TV film), as Jack the Ripper
2007: Eight Miles High, as Rainer Langhans
2007: (TV film), as Felix
2007: Fata Morgana, as Daniel
2007: Rabbit Without Ears, as Moritz
2008: The Red Baron, as Manfred von Richthofen
2008: , as Jan Winter
2008: Valkyrie, as Lieutenant Herber
2009: (TV film), as Marcel Reich-Ranicki
2009: Night Train, as Frankie
2009: 12 Paces Without a Head, as Gottfried Michaelsen
2009: Rabbit Without Ears 2, as Moritz
2010: Friendship!, as Tom
2011: What a Man, as Alex Nowak
2011: , as Alexander Honk
2012: Russian Disco, as Wladimir
2013: , as Paul Voigt
2013: Frau Ella, as Sascha
2013: Kokowääh 2, as himself
2014: Joy of Fatherhood, as Felix
2015: The Little Prince, as the Fox (German version)
2015: The Manny, as Clemens
2016: The Most Beautiful Day, as Andi
2016: Vier gegen die Bank, as Max
2017: The Price, as Jonas
2017: You Are Wanted (TV series), as Lukas Franke
2018: Hot Dog, as Theo
2018: Vielmachglas, as Erik Ruge
2018: , as Toni Katz
2018: Kursk
2019: Playmobil: The Movie, as Rex Dasher (German version)
2020: Resistance, as Klaus Barbie
2021: Army of the Dead, as Ludwig Dieter
2021: Army of Thieves, as Ludwig Dieter/Sebastian Schlencht-Wöhnert
2022: The Swimmers as Sven
2022: Hinterland as Josef Severin
2023: Oppenheimer as Werner Heisenberg
2023: Heart of Stone
TBA: Girl You Know It’s True
Theatre
2004: One, Two, Three – Otto Ludwig Pfiffl, Hebbel Theatre, Berlin
2007: North, directed by Frank Castorf Berlin
Audiobooks
2008: Slam by Nick Hornby,
2008: Die Traumnovelle by Arthur Schnitzler,
References
External links
Matthias Schweighöfer at the German Dubbing Card Index
Matthias Schweighöfer at Players Agency
Schweighöfer at german-films.de
Rubbeldiekatz Videointerview
1981 births
Living people
German film directors
German male film actors
German male television actors
German male voice actors
People from Anklam
21st-century German male actors