German actor Ulrich Mühe, best known for his impressive performance in this year’s Oscar-winning film “Das Leben der Anderen” (The Lives of Others), died of stomach cancer (at the age of 54) last Sunday. Just one day before, he confirmed publicly his chronic illness in an interview to the German daily newspaper Die Welt. Although celebrated in his homeland, both on the stage and behind the film camera, his international acknowledgement only arrived with the Oscar nomination of director Florian Henckel von Donnersmark’s debut film, where he plays a loyal Stasi (former East German secret police) officer that is assigned to spy on a playwright and his actress girlfriend. One year before the nomination by the Academy, Ulrich Mühe was honoured with the Best European Actor Award of 2006 for the same role. Mühe acted in numerous theatre pieces, films and TV crime series. He will be remembered for his masterful performances in Goethe’s “Egmont”, “Macbeth”, DEFA-Film “Hälfte des Lebens”, Michael’s Hanekes “Funny Games” and, most recently, Helge Schneider’s parody “Mein Führer”, among others.
Mühe also took active part in the mass protest demonstrations against the political regime of former German Democratic Republic in November 1989 that ended with the Fall of the Wall.
The German actor is survived by his wife, actress Susanne Lothar, and five children from three marriages.