Klaus Kinski (German: [klaʊs ˈkɪnski]; born Klaus Günter Karl Nakszynski 18 October 1926 – 23 November 1991) was a German actor. Equally renowned for his intense performance style and his notoriously eccentric and volatile personality off-screen, he appeared in over 130 film roles in a career that spanned 40 years, from 1948 to 1988. He is best known for starring in five films directed by Werner Herzog from 1972 to 1987 (Aguirre, the Wrath of God; Nosferatu the Vampyre; Woyzeck; Fitzcarraldo; and Cobra Verde), who would later chronicle their tumultuous relationship in the documentary My Best Fiend. Kinski's roles spanned multiple genres, languages, and nationalities, including Spaghetti Westerns, horror films, war films, dramas, and Edgar Wallace krimi films. His infamy was elevated by a number of eccentric creative endeavors, including a one-man show based on the life of Jesus Christ, a biopic of violinist Niccolò Paganini directed by and starring himself, and over twenty spoken word albums. Kinski was prone to emotional and often violent outbursts aimed at his directors and fellow cast members, issues complicated by a history of mental illness. Herzog described him as "one of the greatest actors of the century, but also a monster and a great pestilence." Posthumously, he was accused of having physically and sexually abused his daughters Pola and Nastassja. His notoriety and prolific output have developed into a widespread cult following and a reputation as a popular icon. Description above from the Wikipedia article Klaus Kinski, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Filmography

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

Appearances as themselves (34)

• 2024Gegen das Schweigen - Machtmissbrauch bei Theater und Film — Self (archive footage)
• 2024Othelo The Great — Self (archive footage)
• 2022Nosferatu: A Film Like a Vampire — Self (archive footage)
• 2021Django & Django: Sergio Corbucci Unchained — Self - Actor (archive footage)
• 2021Hannelore Elsner: More Than One Life — Self (archive footage)
• 2021The Extravagant Little Life of Jean-Claude D. Dreyfus — Self (archive footage)
• 2019Alain Delon, l'ombre au tableau — Self (archive footage)
• 2014Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films — Self - Actor (archive footage) (uncredited)
• 2010In Free Fall — Self (archive footage)
• 2005The Spaghetti West — Self (archive footage)
• 2005The Western World of Ferdinando Baldi — Self (archive footage)
• 2003Kinski rigando Paganini — Self
• 2000Klaus Kinski: I'm not an actor — Self (archive footage)
• 1999My Best Fiend — Self (archive footage)
• 1999Please Kill Mr. Kinski — Self (archive footage)
• Sternstunde Kunst — Self
• 1987Location Africa — Self
• 1986Portrait: Werner Herzog — Self (archive footage)
• Sonntagsgespräch — Self
• Zeit zu zweit — Self - Interviewee
• 1982Burden of Dreams — Self - Actor
• Na sowas! — Self
• NDR Talk Show — Self
• 1979The Making of 'Nosferatu' — Self
• Ciné regards — Self
• Auf los geht's los — Self
• Les Rendez-vous du dimanche — Self
• Am laufenden Band — Self - Guest
• Spécial cinéma — Self
• Je später der Abend — Self
• 1968Western, Italian Style — Self
• Die Drehscheibe — Self
• Weltspiegel — Self
• German Film Award — Self