Max von Sydow
Max von Sydow
Max von Sydowis a Swedish actor who became a French citizen in 2002. He has appeared in many films, in many languages, including Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, English, French, Italian and Spanish. He received the Royal Foundation of Sweden's Cultural Award in 1954, was made a Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres in 2005, and was named a Chevalier de la Légion d'honneur on 17 October 2012...
NationalitySwedish
ProfessionMovie Actor
Date of Birth10 April 1929
CityLund, Sweden
CountrySweden
Max von Sydow quotes about
My parents were brought up in families which believed theatre people weren't to be trusted. But they were nice people.
I don't have a philosophy for choosing roles. Sometimes, it's just, 'This might be interesting; that might be fun to do.' There might be interesting actors or directors in the project, even if the part is not important. And then sometimes, you need the money.
I think it's good that we're sometimes reminded of important events in history.
I think the film you hear about the most is 'The Exorcist.' When people come up to me and say, 'Oh, you scared me!' I was the good guy in that film!
In a silent film, you speak but the audience does not hear you.
I've been the type of father who tries desperately to be perfect but doesn't succeed all the time.
During my military service, I performed a sketch in which I played a flea called Max. So when critics kept misspelling my name, I decided to change it and thought, 'Ah! Max!'
My father was a professor of folklore, and my mother was a teacher until she was married. I had a good relationship with them, and the only argument we had was when I went to university and wanted to go into the theater instead of studying to be a lawyer.
I could never learn to be totally fluent in any other language.
Nobody told me there was any idea for a sequel to 'The Exorcist.' But my agent called me to tell me they were going to do it, and there was a part for me. I said, 'But I died in the first film.' 'Well,' he told me, 'this is from the early days of Father Merrin's life.' I told him I just didn't want to do it again.
I actually know the moment I became known. It was at the Cannes Film Festival, when they showed 'The Virgin Spring.' I walked into that theater as one person, and I walked out as another.
Producers are not gamblers. They want a good return on their investment.
I began imagining scenes in public which some drunk would come up to me and slap me in the face. Nothing like that ever happened, but I often wonder if I would have turned the other cheek
A vacation spot out of season always has a very special magic