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Zbigniew Cybulski

Zbigniew Cybulski

Actor · Died January 8, 1967, aged 39 · Kniaże, Polska

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Zbigniew Cybulski Polish pronunciation: [ˈzbiɡɲɛf t͡sɨˈbulskʲi] (November 3, 1927 – January 8, 1967) was a Polish actor, one of the best-known and most popular personalities of the post-World War II history of Poland. Zbigniew Cybulski was born November 3, 1927 in a small village of Kniaże near Śniatyń, Poland (now a part of Sniatyn Raion, Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, Ukraine). After World War II he joined the Theatre Academy in Kraków. He graduated in 1953 and moved to Gdańsk, where he made his stage debut in Leon Schiller's Wybrzeże Theatre. Also, with his friend Bogumił Kobiela, Cybulski founded a famous student theatre, the Bim-Bom. In the early 1960s, Cybulski moved to Warsaw, where he shortly joined the Kabaret Wagabunda. He also appeared on stage at the Ateneum Theatre, one of the most modern and least conservative Warsaw-based theatres of the epoch. However, Cybulski is best remembered as a screen actor. He first appeared in a 1954 film Kariera as an extra. His first major role came in 1958, when he played in Kazimierz Kutz's Krzyż Walecznych. The same year he also appeared as one of the main characters in Andrzej Wajda's Ashes and Diamonds and Aleksander Ford's The Eighth Day of the Week based on a short story by Marek Hłasko. From then on Cybulski was seen as one of the most notable actors of the Polish Film School and one of the "young and wrathful", as his generation of actors were called at the time. His most famous films, apart from Ashes and Diamonds, include Wojciech Has' The Saragossa Manuscript. He also acted in numerous television plays, including some based on works by Truman Capote, Anton Chekhov and Jerzy Andrzejewski. Cybulski died in an accident at a Wrocław Główny railway station on January 8, 1967, on his way from the film set. As he jumped on the speeding train (as he often did), he slipped on the steps, fell under the train, and was run over. Before the accident he said goodbye to Marlene Dietrich, a personal friend of his, who was a passenger on the train. He was buried in Katowice.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
November 3, 1927
Died
January 8, 1967 (aged 39)
From
Kniaże, Polska
Works as
Actor
Titles
5 on Motif · 37 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 39 days to Oct 28Down 26% in 30 days

What are Zbigniew Cybulski's films like?

Across a limited sample of 4 Motif titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Ideas.

Themes

share of theme weight
Morality
29%
Ideas
29%
Bonds
24%
Society
13%
Power
5%
Romantic love3 titles, browse their movies with this themeFate2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 4 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 1 · Serious 1 · Dark 2

Heightened: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their heightened movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 0 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 3

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 0 · Charged 3 · Intense 1

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

A split, not a type: Steady 3 · Shifting 0 · Whiplash 1

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 2 · Some laughs 2 · Funny 0

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 1 · Relentless 0

Full focus: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their full focus movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

A split, not a type: Casual 0 · Engaged 3 · Full focus 1

Ambiguous: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their ambiguous movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 0 · Open-ended 2 · Ambiguous 2

Roles they play

3 analyzed roles

Usually the Hero: 2 of 3 analyzed roles.

Hero
2 of 3
Ally
1 of 3

Moods and endings

endings shown from 5 titles

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
2
Melancholic
2
Warm
2
Bittersweet
2
Contemplative
1
Other
1

How their films linger

Bittersweet3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteWistful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Zbigniew Cybulski's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 1 of their 5 Motif titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Subscription and free streaming for Zbigniew Cybulski's titles on Motif; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Motif score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

37 credits, 5 with a Motif page; 2 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Piękny dwudziestoletni (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1986)

    as (archive footage) (uncredited)

  • Jowita (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1967)

    as Edward Księżak

  • The Killer Leaves a Trace (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1967)

    as Rodecki

  • Full Ahead (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1967)

    as Janek

  • Iluzja (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1966)

    as Lover

  • The Codes (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1966)

    as Maciek

  • Master (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1966)

    as Director

  • Christmas Eve (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1966)

    as Zapała's Friend

  • The Saragossa Manuscript(1965)

    as Alfonse Van Worden

    Motif score: 95th percentile of all films

  • Tomorrow Mexico (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1966)

    as Paweł Jańczak

  • Alone in the City (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1965)

    as Konrad Ferenc

  • Salto (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1965)

    as Kowalski Malinowski

  • Penguin (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1965)

    as Łukasz

  • To Love (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1964)

    as Fredrik

  • Giuseppe in Warsaw (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1964)

    as Staszek

  • No More Divorces (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1964)

    as Gruszka (Segment 3)

  • Silence (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1963)

    as Roman

  • The Criminal and the Lady (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1963)

    as Jan Ziętek

  • Their Everyday Life (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1963)

    as Andrzej Siennicki

  • How to Be Loved (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1963)

    as Wiktor Rawicz

  • The Doll (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1962)

    as Colonel Octavio Prado Roth / Cotal, the rebel

  • Love at Twenty(1962)

    as Zbyszek (segment "Warszawa")

    Motif score: 82nd percentile of all films

  • Thé a la menthe (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1962)

    Actor

  • Goodbye to the Past (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1961)

    as Famous actor

  • Innocent Sorcerers(1960)

    as Edmund

    Motif score: 89th percentile of all films

  • Goodbye, Till Tomorrow (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1960)

    Writer · as Jacek

  • Night Train(1959)

    as Staszek

    Motif score: 96th percentile of all films

  • Cross of Valor (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1959)

    as Tadeusz Więcek

  • Ashes and Diamonds(1958)

    as Maciek Chełmicki

    Motif score: 95th percentile of all films

  • The Eighth Day of the Week (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1958)

    as Piotr Terlecki

  • Koniec nocy (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1957)

    as Romek Brzozowski

  • Wraki (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1957)

    as Rafał Grabień

  • Tajemnica dzikiego szybu (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1956)

    as Miner (uncredited)

  • Trzy starty (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1955)

    as Mietek Leśniak

  • Career (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1955)

    as Bus Passenger (uncredited)

  • A Generation (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1955)

    as Kostek

  • Man Does Not Die (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1955)

    as Szarlej

Career shape

Star power in the 96th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 37 titles from 1955 to 1986; peak year 1966.

Biggest box office

The Saragossa Manuscript (1965)

$13K worldwide

Highest rated

Night Train (1959)

Motif 96th

Most popular right now

Ashes and Diamonds (1958)

Film career

MilestoneBreakout
19551986

Peak 1966 · their film career is on the way up. Top draw in 1 Motif title. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting37 of 37: 36 only acting, 1 with another role · typical Motif score95thWriting1 of 37: 0 only writing, 1 with another role

By decade

1950s11 · acting1960s25 · 25 acting · 1 crew1980s1 · acting

Billing

usually 2nd · top billed in 44% of 9 roles

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Motif score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on Motif, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30.

How do Zbigniew Cybulski's films land?

Their typical Motif film has a Motif score in the 95th percentile, the median of all 5; across a limited sample of 4 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 94th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

94thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 4

Approval · how many liked their films

92ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 4

Reach · how many have seen their films

78thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 4

Motif score across 5 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up5

Shape of the crowd

None of their 5 titles divides audiences: 3 are Universally Loved.

  • Universally Loved3
  • Crowd Pleaser2

Most loved · actor

Night Train (1959)

Motif 96th · 85% liked

Reviewers score the acting 79/100 in their films, across 4 reviewed titles; fans 82, detractors 48. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on Motif; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Motif score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their Motif titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does Zbigniew Cybulski work with?

People who share at least 2 of Zbigniew Cybulski's Motif titles, grouped by what they did on them; Andrzej Wajda shares the most, 2.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Editors