Whether you like Til Schweiger or not – one thing is certain: the Freiburg native, who turns 60 today, shaped the German film industry like only a few do. In recent decades he has also made it to Hollywood, playing alongside global star Brad Pitt in Tarantino’s World War II film “Inglourious Basterds” (2009).
This was unthinkable when he starred in Germany’s popular classic series “Lindenstrasse” in the early 1990s. Schweiger’s film debut was “Manta, Manta” in 1991 – a fuel comedy about a group of young people with perms who have nothing on their minds in life but love and their Manta cars.
The film catapults us straight into current times, because with a very successful second “Manta” part, Til Schweiger has received probably the harshest criticism to date in recent months. The news magazine “Spiegel” got the case rolling in the spring and reported on alleged harassment and a “climate of fear” on the “Manta” film set. The investigation by an external law firm produced mixed results.
In an interview, Schweiger later spoke about alcohol problems and explained that he was in therapy. The fact that the actor always polarized may also be due to the fact that he joined debates on social media. And dished it out against critics of his films – for example, calling them “idiots” about a “Tatort” film.
Nevertheless, there have been a lot of films and notable successes in the past few decades. Schweiger has not only worked as an actor, but also as a director and producer. “The Moving Man”, “Keinohrhasen”, “Kokowääh” and “Honig im Kopf” are among others in his portfolio. At times he also played the Hamburg “Tatort” detective Nick Tschiller.
One of Schweiger’s film trademarks is that he always lets his children play along. In addition to his career, Schweiger runs an interior design company. Years ago he also founded a foundation to help children in need.
