Udo Kier, Prolific Character Actor of ‘My Own Private Idaho’ and Warhol’s ’Frankenstein,’ Dies at 81
Udo Kier, a strikingly versatile actor whose career spanned six decades and encompassed art-house masterpieces and mainstream Hollywood fare, has died. He was 81. Kier passed away March 29, 2024, in Los Angeles, according to Variety. His distinctive presence and willingness to embrace challenging roles made him a favourite of filmmakers including rainer Werner Fassbinder, Lars von Trier, and Gus van Sant.
That pair of films made Kier famous, and he spent the next two decades working through Europe and collaborating with legendary writer-director Rainer Werner Fassbinder on films like “The Stationmaster’s Wife,” “The Third Generation” and “Lili Marleen.” then, at the Berlin Film Festival, Kier met future two-time Oscar-nominated director Gus van Sant, who Kier credits with securing him an American work permit and a SAG card.
In 1991, Van Sant widely introduced Kier to American audiences with his coming-of-age drama “My Own Private Idaho,” loosely based on Shakespeare’s “Henry IV.” Kier appeared in a supporting role alongside stars River Phoenix and Keanu reeves. Around the same time, Kier began his lifelong collaboration with von Trier. Starting in the late ’80s with “Epidemic,” Kier appeared in the 1991 film “Europa” before appearing in several episodes of von Trier’s long-running horror-thriller series “The Kingdom” through the ’90s and aughts. Their other film collaborations include “Breaking the Waves,” “Dancer in the Dark,” “Dogville,” “Melancholia” and “Nymphomaniac: Vol. II.”
The 1990s also saw Kier in several supporting roles in major Hollywood productions, such as “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective,” “Armageddon” and “Blade.” He also appeared in Madonna’s book “Sex” in 1992, and made appearances in her music videos for “Erotica” and “Deeper and Deeper” from her album “Erotica.” More recently, Kier appeared in Kleber Mendonça Filho’s awards darling “The Secret Agent.” The film earned star Wagner Moura the honor for best actor at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.
Born Udo Kierspe in Cologne,Germany,in a hospital that was being bombed by Allied Forces,he moved to London at 18 after meeting Fassbinder in a bar. “I liked the attention, so I became an actor,” he told Variety’s Peter Debruge in a 2024 interview. After working between Europe and the U.S. for many decades, Kier settled in Los Angeles and Palm Springs, where he lived in a former mid-century library and cultivated interests in art, architecture and collecting. He was a fixture at the Palm Springs Film Festival, where he warmly received accolades from fans.
