Thomas Kretschmann

Thomas Kretschmann will next be seen in John Duigan's drama Head in the Clouds, starring Charlize Theron, Penélope Cruz and Stuart Townsend. Currently, he is filming the drama Celestine Prophecy for director Arman Mastroianni with Hector Elizondo and Annabeth Gish. Most recently, he co-starred in the feature films In Enemy Hands with William H. Macy and Lauren Holly, and Roman Polanski's Oscar®-winning The Pianist.

Kretschmann's additional credits include U-571 with Matthew McConaughey and Harvey Keitel for director Jonathan Mostow, and Blade II, among others. On television, Kretschmann had a recurring role on 24 and was a guest star on Karen Sisco. In addition, he co-starred in the cable movie Esther for TNT.

While training as a swimmer in East Germany, Kretschmann decided to purse an acting career and escaped the Communist country via three different countries before being granted political asylum in West Berlin. After three years of studying acting, he was invited to be a member of Schillertheatre, the national theatre of Berlin. 1n 1991, Kretschmann made his film debut in Der Mitwisser, which earned him Germany's prestigious Max Ophüls Prize as Best Up-and-Coming Actor. When he appeared in the World War II epic Stalingrad, his performance launched him into the international limelight. He went on to star in Queen Margot, Marching in the Dark, Dario Argento's The Stendahl Syndrome and Prince Valiant.

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