---
name: "Klaus Kinski"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/klaus-kinski"
fi1m_id: "klaus-kinski"
imdb_id: "nm0001428"
tmdb_id: 14277
wikidata_id: "Q55419"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "18 October 1926"
died: "23 November 1991"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 5
average_fi1m_score: 82
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 4
updated: "2026-09-20T04:21:04.944666+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Klaus Kinski

## Identity

Klaus Kinski

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/klaus-kinski
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** klaus-kinski
- **IMDb ID:** nm0001428
- **TMDB ID:** 14277
- **Wikidata ID:** Q55419
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Klaus_Kinski, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q55419, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001428/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/14277

Actor. Born 18 October 1926 in Sopot. Died 23 November 1991.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 18 October 1926, Sopot
- **Died:** 23 November 1991
- **Active:** 1965–1982
- **Titles on Fi1m:** 5: 4 acting, 1 other
- **Frequently works with:** [Werner Herzog](https://film.one/person/werner-herzog.md)
- **Average Fi1m score:** 82, as actor, over 4 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1950s 79 (1), 1960s 78 (2), 1970s 91 (1), 1980s 82 (1)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 82 to 78 across 4 titles
- **Score spread:** 3 at 80+, 1 at 60–79, 0 under 60
- **Lead roles:** 2 of 3 acting credits billed first or second
- **Genres:** Drama 3, Adventure 2, History 1, Romance 1, War 1, Western 1
- **Screen time:** 10 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $127m across 3 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Klaus_Kinski, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q55419, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001428/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/14277

## Streaming the US now

- **The Roku Channel:** [*Aguirre, the Wrath of God*](https://film.one/film/aguirre-the-wrath-of-god.md) (91)
- **Apple TV:** [*For a Few Dollars More*](https://film.one/film/for-a-few-dollars-more.md) (85)
- **Amazon Prime Video:** [*Fitzcarraldo*](https://film.one/film/fitzcarraldo.md) (82)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Klaus Kinski

> Klaus Kinski makes an appetite for opera feel as urgent as a threat. His fierce concentration is worth seeking out, particularly with Werner Herzog, though *Fitzcarraldo* sometimes admires its determined dreamer more than he deserves.

In *Fitzcarraldo* (1982), Klaus Kinski gives an opera enthusiast the concentration of someone who cannot imagine being refused. The wish to bring opera to the Amazon jungle is absurd, but he plays it with a seriousness that makes dismissal difficult. We were moved by his conviction because he makes this pleasure feel necessary to the man's survival. There is gentleness in the purpose, even as his expectation that the world should accommodate him remains troubling.

The earlier *For a Few Dollars More* (1965) gives him much less room and still makes good use of him. As Juan Wild, he catches our attention before we have worked out how much the character matters. Sergio Leone's Western belongs chiefly to Clint Eastwood and Lee Van Cleef, but Kinski helps keep its supporting encounters distinct. His work in the 1960s included numerous Westerns and exploitation films; here, that forceful presence serves a film with plenty of other people worth watching.

Herzog gave that intensity sustained attention across five films, beginning with *Aguirre, the Wrath of God* (1972) and ending with *Cobra Verde* (1987). That partnership made his obsessive antiheroes central to his reputation. As Count Dracula in *Nosferatu the Vampyre* (1979), he worked through physical and vocal intensity; *Woyzeck* (1979) drew on his capacity to suggest torment.

In *Fitzcarraldo*, cinematographer Thomas Mauch gives the Amazon scenery enough prominence to draw attention away from Kinski. That helps: the landscape makes his determination look faintly ridiculous, and there is pleasure in looking beyond him. Herzog's wandering narrative still asks for considerable patience, and the screenplay could question the character's sense of entitlement more closely. Kinski sustains our interest through those delays, although Herzog is sometimes too pleased simply to watch him persist.

Start with *For a Few Dollars More* if an entire film built around such insistence sounds tiring. Its loose story matters less than the company of Eastwood and Van Cleef. For *Fitzcarraldo*, set aside an uninterrupted evening and allow for a wandering story.

## Biography

Klaus Kinski was a German actor. He was born Klaus Günter Karl Nakszynski on 18 October 1926 in Sopot (then Zoppot, Free City of Danzig) and died on 23 November 1991 in Lagunitas, California.

Kinski appeared in over 130 film roles between 1948 and 1989. His credits include Juan Wild - The Hunchback in *For a Few Dollars More* (1965), Kostoyed Amourski in *Doctor Zhivago* (1965), Don Lope de Aguirre in *Aguirre, the Wrath of God* (1972), Count Dracula in *Nosferatu the Vampyre* (1979), and the title role in *Fitzcarraldo* (1982). He also appeared in *The Great Silence* (1968) and *Woyzeck* (1979).

*Sources: imdb.com, en.wikipedia.org.*

## On Fi1m (5)

### Performed in (4) — the average rests on these

- *Fitzcarraldo* (1982), Fi1m 82, as Fitzcarraldo — [page](https://film.one/film/fitzcarraldo.md)
- *Aguirre, the Wrath of God* (1972), Fi1m 91, as Don Lope de Aguirre — [page](https://film.one/film/aguirre-the-wrath-of-god.md)
- *Doctor Zhivago* (1965), Fi1m 70, as Kostoyed Amourski — [page](https://film.one/film/doctor-zhivago.md)
- *For a Few Dollars More* (1965), Fi1m 85, as Juan Wild - The Hunchback — [page](https://film.one/film/for-a-few-dollars-more.md)

### Also credited (1) — thanks, archive footage, uncredited

- *Decision Before Dawn* (1951), Fi1m 79, as Whining Soldier (uncredited) — [page](https://film.one/film/decision-before-dawn.md)

## Complete filmography (147)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Al borde del abismo: la aventura peruana de Werner Herzog* (2026), Actor
- *AGFA Mystery Mixtape #2: Later in L.A.* (2020), as (archive footage)
- *The AGFA Mystery Mixtape Vault* (2020), as (archive footage)
- *Filming Silenzio* (2017), as (archive footage)
- *FantastiCozzi* (2016), as Nosferatu (archive footage)
- *Fifty Shades of Erotica* (2015), as (archive footage)
- *Peter Baumgartner, Filmkameramann* (2014), as (archive footage)
- *Jesus Christ Saviour* (2008), Writer
- *Beloved Count* (2007), as Renfield (archive footage)
- *Whiteface* (2002), as (archive footage)
- *Otto – The Series* (1995), series, as Verschiedene
- *Dracula: A Cinematic Scrapbook* (1991), as Renfield (archive footage)
- *Paganini* (1990), as Niccolo Paganini · Director, Writer, Editor, Story, Screenplay
- *White Hunter* (1990), as Klaus Naginsky
- *Nosferatu in Venice* (1988), as Nosferatu
- *Cobra Verde* (1987), as Francisco Manoel da Silva aka Cobra Verde
- *Timestalkers* (1987), as Dr. Joseph Cole
- *Crawlspace* (1986), as Karl Gunther
- *Revenge of the Stolen Stars* (1986), as Donald McBride
- *Star Knight* (1985), as Boetius
- *Commando Leopard* (1985), as Silveira
- *Creature* (1985), as Hans Rudy Hofner
- *The Little Drummer Girl* (1984), as Martin Kurtz
- *Code Name: Wild Geese* (1984), as Charleton
- *Beauty and the Beast* (1984), as Beast
- *The Secret Diary of Sigmund Freud* (1984), as Dr. Max Bauer
- *The Hitchhiker* (1983), series, as Kurt Hoffman
- *Diary* (1983), as (archive footage)
- *Android* (1982), as Dr. Daniel
- *Faerie Tale Theatre* (1982), series, as Beast
- *The Soldier* (1982), as Dracha
- *Fitzcarraldo* (1982), as Fitzcarraldo — Fi1m 82, [page](https://film.one/film/fitzcarraldo.md)
- *Venom* (1981), as Jacques Müller (Jacmel)
- *Love & Money* (1981), as Frederic Stockheinz
- *Fruits of Passion* (1981), as Sir Stephen
- *Buddy Buddy* (1981), as Dr. Hugo Zuckerbrot
- *The Child Woman* (1980), as Marcel
- *Schizoid* (1980), as Dr. Pieter Fales
- *Haine* (1980), as Le motard
- *Woyzeck* (1979), as Friedrich Johann Franz Woyzeck
- *Zoo zéro* (1979), as Yavé, le directeur du zoo
- *I Am My Films: A Portrait of Werner Herzog* (1979), as Voice
- *Nosferatu the Vampyre* (1979), as Count Dracula
- *The Song of Roland* (1978), as Roland / Klaus
- *Death of a Corrupt Man* (1977), as Nicolas Tomski
- *Operation Thunderbolt* (1977), as Wilfried Boese
- *Madame Claude* (1977), as Alexander Zakis
- *Golden Night* (1976), as Michel Fournier
- *Jack the Ripper* (1976), as Dr. Dennis Orloff / Jack the Ripper
- *The Net* (1975), as Emilio Bossi
- *A Genius, Two Friends, and an Idiot* (1975), as Doc Foster
- *Lifespan* (1975), as Nicholas Ulrich
- *Return of Shanghai Joe* (1975), as Pat Barnes
- *That Most Important Thing: Love* (1975), as Karl-Heinz Zimmer
- *Footprints on the Moon* (1975), as Professor Blackmann
- *Heroes in Hell* (1974), as Gen. Kaufmann
- *The Hand That Feeds the Dead* (1974), as Prof. Nijinski
- *The Fighting Fist of Shanghai Joe* (1973), as Scalper Jack
- *Death Smiles on a Murderer* (1973), as Dr. Sturges
- *The Bloody Hands of the Law* (1973), as Vito Quattroni
- *Aguirre, the Wrath of God* (1972), as Don Lope de Aguirre — Fi1m 91, [page](https://film.one/film/aguirre-the-wrath-of-god.md)
- *A Noose Is Waiting for You Trinity* (1972), as Scott
- *Black Killer* (1971), as James Webb / Black Killer
- *Eye of the Spider* (1971), as Hans Fischer
- *The Price of Death* (1971), as Chester Conway / Ray
- *Web of the Spider* (1971), as Edgar Allan Poe
- *Shoot the Living and Pray for the Dead* (1971), as Dan Hogan
- *Vengeance Is a Dish Served Cold* (1971), as Virgil Prescott
- *Slaughter Hotel* (1971), as Dr. Francis Clay
- *His Name Was King* (1971), as Brian Foster
- *Adios Compañeros* (1971), as Reverend Cotton
- *Coffin Full of Dollars* (1971), as Dan Hagen / Slander
- *The Beast* (1970), as Johnny Laster
- *Churchill's Leopards* (1970), as Captain Holtz
- *The Night of the Assassin* (1970), as Evagoras
- *Only the Cool* (1970), as Pavel Richko / Torpédo I
- *Count Dracula* (1970), as Renfield
- *And God Said to Cain* (1970), as Gary Hamilton
- *How Did a Nice Girl Like You Get Into This Business?* (1970), as Juan José Ignatio Rodriguez de Calderon / 'Sam'
- *I Am Sartana Your Angel of Death* (1969), as Chadeau / Holden / Hot Dead
- *Venus in Furs* (1969), as Ahmed Kortobawi
- *Salt in the Wound* (1969), as Cpl. Brian Haskins / Norman Carr
- *Gangster's Law* (1969), as Quintero
- *Double Face* (1969), as John Alexander
- *Marquis de Sade: Justine* (1969), as Marquis De Sade
- *Five for Hell* (1969), as SS Col. Hans Mueller
- *The Great Silence* (1968), as Tigrero
- *The Bastard* (1968), as Adam
- *The Vatican Affair* (1968), as Clint Rogers
- *Twice a Judas* (1968), as Dingus
- *If You Meet Sartana Pray for Your Death* (1968), as Morgan
- *Coplan Saves His Skin* (1968), as Theler
- *Psychopath* (1968), as Periwinkle
- *The Ruthless Four* (1968), as Brent il Biondo
- *Man, Pride and Vengeance* (1967), as Lt. Miguel Garcia
- *Grand Slam* (1967), as Erich Weiss
- *Five Golden Dragons* (1967), as Gert
- *The Million Eyes of Sumuru* (1967), as President Boong
- *Creature with the Blue Hand* (1967), as Dave Emerson / Richard Emerson
- *A Bullet for the General* (1967), as El Santo
- *Target for Killing* (1966), as Caporetti
- *Where Are You Taking That Woman* (1966), as Gomez (Rio segment)
- *Our Man in Marrakesh* (1966), as Jonquil
- *Circus of Fear* (1966), as Manfred
- *Doctor Zhivago* (1965), as Kostoyed Amourski — Fi1m 70, [page](https://film.one/film/doctor-zhivago.md)
- *For a Few Dollars More* (1965), as Juan Wild - The Hunchback — Fi1m 85, [page](https://film.one/film/for-a-few-dollars-more.md)
- *That Man in Istanbul* (1965), as Schenck
- *The Dirty Game* (1965), as Russian Agent
- *Again the Ringer* (1965), as Edwards
- *The Pleasure Girls* (1965), as Nikko Stalmar
- *Traitor's Gate* (1964), as Kane
- *Secret of the Chinese Carnation* (1964), as Speranzo
- *Last of the Renegades* (1964), as David "Luke" Lucas
- *The Curse of the Hidden Vault* (1964), as George
- *Mark of the Tortoise* (1964), as Shapiro
- *The Last Ride to Santa Cruz* (1964), as Jose
- *Piccadilly Zero Hour 12* (1963), as Whitey
- *The Secret of the Black Widow* (1963), as Boyd
- *The Mystery of the Indian Temple* (1963), Actor
- *Kali-Yug, Goddess of Vengeance* (1963), as Saddhu
- *Scotland Yard Hunts Dr. Mabuse* (1963), as Inspector Joe Wright
- *The Indian Scarf* (1963), as Peter Ross
- *The Black Abbot* (1963), as Thomas Fortuna
- *The Black Cobra* (1963), as Koks-Charley
- *The Squeaker* (1963), as Krishna
- *Die Mondvögel* (1963), as Valentin
- *The Inn on the River* (1962), as Gregor Gubanow
- *The Door with Seven Locks* (1962), as Pheeny
- *The Red Pastures* (1962), as Martin
- *The Counterfeit Traitor* (1962), as Kindler
- *The Secret of the Red Orchid* (1962), as Steve
- *The Strange Countess* (1961), as Bresset
- *Die Kurve* (1961), as Anton
- *The Devil's Daffodil* (1961), as Peter Keene
- *Bankraub in der Rue Latour* (1961), as Bex, Autor
- *Dead Eyes of London* (1961), as Edgar Strauss
- *The Avenger* (1960), as Lorenz Voss
- *A Time to Love and a Time to Die* (1958), as Gestapo Lieutenant
- *Corinna Darling* (1956), as Klaus Brockmann
- *Waldwinter* (1956), as Otto Hartwig
- *Hanussen* (1955), as Erik von Spazier / Mirko
- *Sarajevo* (1955), as Nedeljko Čabrinović
- *Children, Mother, and the General* (1955), as Leutnant, der nicht mehr lacht
- *Ludwig II* (1955), as Prince Otto von Bayern
- *Fear* (1954), as Cabaret Performer (uncredited)
- *Decision Before Dawn* (1951), as Whining Soldier (uncredited) — Fi1m 79, [page](https://film.one/film/decision-before-dawn.md)
- *Morituri* (1948), as Dutch prisoner

## Gallery

- ![Klaus Kinski](https://film.one/media/person/103567/gallery-e7df265deb58.jpg) Klaus Kinski — Georges Biard, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/Klaus_Kinski_Cannes-%28retouched-cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Movie poster for the US theatrical release of the German film Aguirre, the Wrath of God (1972). It depicts the opening scene, filmed in Machu Picchu, in which L (1977)](https://film.one/media/person/103567/gallery-00e32d454d5e.jpg) Movie poster for the US theatrical release of the German film Aguirre, the Wrath of God (1972). It depicts the opening scene, filmed in Machu Picchu, in which L (1977) — Poster design by Sawyer Studios. Poster illustration by Michael J. Deas. Distributed by New Yorker Films., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/68/Aguirre%2C_The_Wrath_of_God_%28New_Yorker_Films%2C_1977%29.jpg/1280px-Aguirre%2C_The_Wrath_of_God_%28New_Yorker_Films%2C_1977%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Rare shot of Herzog on the set of his masterpiece w/ Klaus Kinski. (1972)](https://film.one/media/person/103567/gallery-cfe20fad0582.jpg) Rare shot of Herzog on the set of his masterpiece w/ Klaus Kinski. (1972) — Distributed by New Yorker Films., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a1/Aguirre%2C_the_Wrath_of_God_-_production_photo.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Interiores de la Casa Fitzcarraldo en Iquitos, Perú. (2019)](https://film.one/media/person/103567/gallery-b9482f728f77.jpg) Interiores de la Casa Fitzcarraldo en Iquitos, Perú. (2019) — Mayimbú, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/26/Casa_Fitzcarraldo_2019_%282%29.jpg/1280px-Casa_Fitzcarraldo_2019_%282%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Klaus Kinski](https://film.one/media/person/103567/gallery-80d05d52fe46.jpg) Klaus Kinski — Image via TMDB
- ![Klaus Kinski](https://film.one/media/person/103567/gallery-31e48df7eaab.jpg) Klaus Kinski — Image via TMDB
- ![Interiores de la Casa Fitzcarraldo en Iquitos, Perú. (2019)](https://film.one/media/person/103567/gallery-d9392e9e3969.jpg) Interiores de la Casa Fitzcarraldo en Iquitos, Perú. (2019) — Mayimbú, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/01/Casa_Fitzcarraldo_2019_%284%29.jpg/1280px-Casa_Fitzcarraldo_2019_%284%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Interiores de la Casa Fitzcarraldo en Iquitos, Perú. (2019)](https://film.one/media/person/103567/gallery-d40f38d13df8.jpg) Interiores de la Casa Fitzcarraldo en Iquitos, Perú. (2019) — Mayimbú, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d5/Casa_Fitzcarraldo_2019_%285%29.jpg/1280px-Casa_Fitzcarraldo_2019_%285%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)

## Awards

### Other awards — 1 won

- Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres 1986: Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres (won)

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/klaus-kinski