Andrzej Seweryn | |
|---|---|
 Seweryn in 2025 | |
| Born | (1946-04-25)25 April 1946 (age 79) |
| Education | National Academy of Dramatic Art in Warsaw |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1964–present |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 3 |
| Signature | |
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Andrzej Teodor Seweryn (Polish pronunciation:[ˈand͡ʐɛj sɛˈvɛrɨn]; born 25 April 1946) is a Polishactor anddirector. Regarded as one of the most successful Polish theatre actors, he starred in over 50 films, mostly in Poland, France, and Germany. He is also one of only three non-French actors to have been hired by the Paris-basedComédie-Française.[1] In 2017, he received thePolish Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of painterZdzisław Beksiński in the biographical filmThe Last Family. In 2023, he was honoured with thePolish Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance indrama filmŚubuk.[2]
He is currently serving as director general of the Polski Theatre inWarsaw. In 1990, he was ranked among the three greatest Polish dramatic actors after 1965 alongsidePiotr Fronczewski andWojciech Pszoniak.[3]
Andrzej Seweryn was born on 25 April 1946 inHeilbronn,Germany.[4] His parents, Zdzisław and Zofia, were captured and forced intoslave labor in Germany duringWorld War II. After the birth of Andrzej, they returned to Poland. He was raised inWarsaw where he attended the Joachim Lelewel High School No. 41.[5] In 1968 he graduated from theNational Academy of Dramatic Art in Warsaw and worked atTeatr Ateneum where he continued to act until 1980.[6] He was one of the co-organizers of the1968 student protest at the University of Warsaw in response to the banning ofDziady (Forefathers' Eve) directed byKazimierz Dejmek by the Polish communist authorities. In the same year, he spent five months in prison for distributing leaflets against theWarsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia.[7]
Already in the 1970s he gained much fame following his appearance in numerous films directed byAndrzej Wajda, notablyWithout Anesthesia,The Promised Land and theMan of Iron. For his role in Wajda's 1980Dyrygent Seweryn received theSilver Bear for Best Actor at the30th Berlin International Film Festival.[8] In 1980 Seweryn also made his stage debut in France following the staging of Wajda's interpretation of plays byStanisław Witkiewicz at theThéâtre Nanterre-Amandiers.
The imposition of themartial law in Poland in 1981 found Seweryn in France. A sympathiser of the outlawedSolidarity, he decided to stay abroad and settle in France. With time he also applied for French citizenship. During his stay in France he collaborated with some of the most renowned theatre directors. Among them were Claude Régy (La Trilogie du revoir andGrand et Petit byBotho Strauss),Patrice Chéreau (Peer Gynt by Ibsen),Peter Brook (The Mahabharata),Bernard Sobel (Nathan the Wise byGotthold Ephraim Lessing,The Good Person of Szechwan byBertold Brecht,Tartuffe byMolière),Deborah Warner (A Doll's House byHenrik Ibsen),Antoine Vitez (L'Échange byPaul Claudel), Jacques Rosner (The Cherry Orchard byAnton Chekhov andBreakfast with Wittgenstein based on a novel byThomas Bernhard), and Jacques Lassalle (Jedermann byHugo von Hofmannsthal andThe Misanthrope by Molière).[9]
Since 1993 he has performed inComédie Française inParis (receiving full membership in 1995, as the third non-French in the history of that theatre) and taught at theParis Conservatoire. In 1996 he receivedWitkacy Prize - Critics' Circle Award. In 2000, he became a member of thePolish Academy of Arts and Sciences.[10] For his contribution to French culture in 2005 was awarded withLégion d'honneur, in addition toOrdre des Arts et des Lettres[11] andOrdre national du Mérite.[12] In 2008, he was awarded the Commander's Cross of theOrder of Polonia Restituta.[13]
Andrzej Seweryn appeared in over 50 motion pictures, most them Polish, French and German productions. He is best known in theUnited States for his portrayal asJulian Scherner in the filmSchindler's List. Seweryn was allegedly chosen for the role of Scherner since he bore a striking physical resemblance to the actual Julian Scherner, based upon photographic evidence fromWorld War II.He has also portrayed theFrench Revolutionary leaderMaximilien Robespierre, in the film andmini-seriesLa Révolution française (1989) ('The French Revolution').[14]
His 2006 filmWho Never Lived was entered into the28th Moscow International Film Festival.[15] In the same year, he received theGold Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis.[16] Between 2008–2011, he served as a member of the Council of thePolish Film Institute.[17]
In 2016, he won theBest Actor Award at theLocarno International Film Festival for his portrayal of painterZdzisław Beksiński inJan P. Matuszyński's 2016 biopicThe Last Family.[18] In 2017, he also won thePolish Academy Award for Best Actor as well as Best Actor Award at the annualGdynia Film Festival for the same role.[19]
In 2023, he won thePolish Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role inJacek Lusiński's 2022 drama filmŚubuk.[20]
He has three children with three different wives: a daughter, Maria Seweryn (born 1975) with his first wife, Polish actressKrystyna Janda, and two sons, Yann-Baptiste and Maximilien.[21]
