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Fritz Kortner

Fritz Kortner

Actor · Died July 22, 1970, aged 78 · Vienna, Austria-Hungary [now Austria]

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Fritz Kortner (12 May 1892 – 22 July 1970) was an Austrian-born stage and film actor and theatre director. Kortner was born in Vienna as Fritz Nathan Kohn. He studied at the Vienna Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. After graduating, he joined Max Reinhardt in Berlin in 1911 and then Leopold Jessner in 1916. Also in that year he made his first appearance in a silent film. He became one of Germany's best known character actors. His speciality was playing sinister and threatening roles, though he also appeared in the title role of 1930's Dreyfus. With the coming to power of the Nazis, Kortner, being Jewish, chose to flee Germany in 1933. He emigrated to the United States, where he found work as a character actor and theatre director for a time before returning to Germany in 1949. Upon his return, he became noted for his innovative staging and direction, particularly of classics such as his Richard III (1964) in which the king crawls over piles of corpses at the end. Kortner died in Munich. Description above from the Wikipedia article Fritz Kortner, licensed under CC-BY-SA,full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
May 12, 1892
Died
July 22, 1970 (aged 78)
From
Vienna, Austria-Hungary [now Austria]
Works as
Actor
Titles
8 on MovieCove · 94 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 47% in 30 days

What are Fritz Kortner's films like?

Across their 8 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Power.

Genres

Crime5 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 81st percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Crime movies
Drama2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 59th percentile
: browse their Drama movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Self
31%
Power
23%
Morality
22%
Society
13%
Bonds
4%
Survival
4%
Ideas
3%
Justice3 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity2 titles, browse their movies with this themePurpose2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 8 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Dark: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their dark movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 0 · Serious 3 · Dark 5

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

Grounded 3 · Stylized 4 · Heightened 1

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

Gentle 0 · Charged 6 · Intense 2

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

A split, not a type: Steady 4 · Shifting 3 · Whiplash 1

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

Straight-faced 8 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 0

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

Slow burn 4 · Even-paced 4 · Relentless 0

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

Casual 1 · Engaged 6 · Full focus 1

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

Resolved 5 · Open-ended 3 · Ambiguous 0

Roles they play

4 analyzed roles

Usually the Shadow: 2 of 4 analyzed roles.

Shadow
2 of 4
Mentor
1 of 4
Threshold guardian
1 of 4

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
6
Melancholic
5
Contemplative
3
Thrilling
2
Dread
3
Other
2

How their films linger

Thought-provoking3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 2 with a twist

  • Happy2
  • Bittersweet2
  • Tragic1
  • Ambiguous3

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 Fritz Kortner's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 3 of their 8 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (3).

Subscription and free streaming for Fritz Kortner's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits 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

94 credits, 8 with a MovieCove page; 6 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Emilia Galotti (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)

    Director

  • Clavigo (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1970)

    Stage Director · Writer

  • Der Kaufmann von Venedig (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    as Shylock

  • Fritz Kortner spricht Monologe für eine Schallplatte (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1966)

    Actor

  • Fünfter Akt, siebente Szene. Fritz Kortner probt Kabale und Liebe (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)

    Actor

  • Leonce und Lena (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    Director

  • Der eingebildete Kranke (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    Director

  • Die Sendung der Lysistrata (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    Director · Writer

  • Androcles and the Lion (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1958)

    Director

  • Sarajevo (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1955)

    Director

  • Secrets of the City (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1955)

    Director · Writer

  • Epilogue (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1950)

    as Mr. P. L. Hoopman

  • The Last Illusion (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1949)

    Writer · as Professor Mauthner

  • The Vicious Circle(1948)

    as Joseph Schwartz

    Midcredits score: 30th percentile of all films

  • Berlin Express(1948)

    as Otto Franzen

    Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films

  • The Brasher Doubloon (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1947)

    as Vannier

  • The Razor's Edge(1946)

    as Kosti

    Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all films

  • Somewhere in the Night(1946)

    as Anzelmo aka Dr. Oracle

    Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all films

  • The Wife of Monte Cristo(1946)

    as Maillard

    Midcredits score: 26th percentile of all films

  • The Hitler Gang (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1944)

    as Gregor Strasser

  • The Strange Death of Adolf Hitler (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1943)

    Screenplay · as Bauer

  • The Purple V (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1943)

    as Thomas Forster

  • The Eternal Jew (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1940)

    as Dimitri Karamasoff (archive footage)

  • Midnight Menace (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1937)

    as Minister Peters of Grovnia

  • The Crouching Beast (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1935)

    as Ahmed Bey

  • Abdul the Damned (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1935)

    as The Sultan, Abdul Hamid II & Kislar

  • Little Friend (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1934)

    as Giant

  • Evensong (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1934)

    as Arthur Kober

  • Chu Chin Chow (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1934)

    as Abu Hasan

  • A Girl You Don't Forget (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1932)

    Director · Writer

  • The Upright Sinner (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1931)

    Director · Writer

  • The Murderer Dmitri Karamazov (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1931)

    as Dimitri Karamasoff

  • Danton (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1931)

    as Danton

  • The Love Storm (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1930)

    as Captain Kell

  • Dreyfus (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1930)

    as Hauptmann Alfred Dreyfus

  • The Other (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1930)

    as Staatsanwalt Hallers

  • Giftgas (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1929)

    as Konzernpräsident Straaten

  • Atlantic (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1929)

    as Heinrich Thomas

  • Die stärkere Macht (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1929)

    Actor

  • The Ship of Lost Men (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1929)

    as Capt. Fernando Vela

  • Die Frau im Talar (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1929)

    Actor

  • The Woman One Longs For (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1929)

    as Dr. Karoff

  • The Somnambulist (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1929)

    Actor

  • Pandora's Box(1929)

    as Dr. Ludwig Schön

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films

  • The Last Night (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1928)

    as Montaloup, Kommissar des Sicherheitsausschusses

  • Marquis d’Eon, der Spion der Pompadour (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1928)

    Actor

  • Odette (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1928)

    as Frontenac

  • Frau Sorge (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1928)

    as Der alte Meyhöfer

  • Die Geliebte des Gouverneurs (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1927)

    Writer · Actor

  • Die Ausgestoßenen (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1927)

    Actor

  • Alpentragödie (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1927)

    as Father

  • Primanerliebe (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1927)

    as Karsten

  • Mata Hari: the Red Dancer (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1927)

    as Graf Bobrykin

  • The Life of Beethoven (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1927)

    as Ludwig van Beethoven

  • Draga Maschin (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1927)

    Actor

  • Should We Be Silent? (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1926)

    as Der annoncirende Arzt

  • Kiedy kobieta zdradza męża (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1924)

    as lokaj

  • Moderne Ehen (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1924)

    Actor

  • The Hands of Orlac(1924)

    as Nera

    Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films

  • Dr. Wislizenus (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1924)

    as Dr. Wislizenus

  • Armes kleines Mädchen (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1924)

    Actor

  • Ein Weib, ein Tier, ein Diamant (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1923)

    as Urmensch

  • Warning Shadows (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1923)

    as The Count

  • Nora (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1923)

    as Krogstadt

  • The Ghost with the Deadly Kiss (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1923)

    Actor

  • Am Rande der Großstadt (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1922)

    Actor

  • What Belongs to Darkness (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1922)

    as Gangster

  • Peter the Great (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1922)

    as Patriarch Adrian

  • Der Graf von Essex (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1922)

    as Lord Nottingham

  • Am roten Kliff (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1922)

    as Henning Rinkens

  • Der Eisenbahnkönig, 1. Teil - Mensch und Mammon (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1921)

    Actor

  • Der Eisenbahnkönig, 2. Teil - Lauernder Tod (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1921)

    Actor

  • Backstairs (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1921)

    as The Postman

  • Danton (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1921)

    as Minor Role (rumored)

  • Landstraße und Großstadt (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1921)

    as Mendel Hammerstein

  • Die Verschwörung zu Genua (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1921)

    as Gianettino

  • Haschisch, das Paradies der Hölle (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1921)

    as Sultan

  • The House on the Moon (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1921)

    as Jan van Haag - Wachsfigurenhändler

  • Die Lieblingsfrau des Maharadscha (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1921)

    as Bhirma

  • The Night of Queen Isabeau (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1920)

    as Connetable

  • Weltbrand(1920)

    as Iwan Becker

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • Der Schädel der Pharaonentochter (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1920)

    Actor

  • Catherine the Great (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1920)

    as Potemkin

  • Die Brüder Karamasoff (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1920)

    Actor

  • Va banque (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1920)

    Actor

  • Satan (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1920)

    as Pharao Amenhotep

  • Die Verschleierte (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1920)

    Actor

  • Gerechtigkeit (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1920)

    Actor

  • Das Auge des Buddha (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1919)

    Actor

  • Der Sonnwendhof (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1918)

    Actor

  • Frauenehre (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1918)

    Actor

  • Her Other Self (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1918)

    as Professor

  • Der Märtyrer seines Herzens (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1918)

    Writer · as Ludwig van Beethoven

  • Der Sturm (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Teleplay

Career shape

Star power in the 90th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 94 titles, 93 of them dated from 1918 to 1971.

Biggest box office

Pandora's Box (1929)

$63K worldwide

Highest rated

Pandora's Box (1929)

Midcredits 93rd

Film career

Top draw in 1 MovieCove title.

  • 1923Screen debut· Warning Shadows

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting83 of 94: 79 only acting, 4 with another role · typical Midcredits score77thDirecting10 of 94: 5 only directing, 5 with another roleWriting10 of 94: 0 only writing, 10 with another roleOther crew1 of 94: 0 only other crew, 1 with another role

94 titles, 10 with more than one role.

By decade

1910s5 · 5 acting · 1 crew1920s52 · 52 acting · 1 crew1930s13 · 11 acting · 2 crew1940s11 · 11 acting · 2 crew1950s4 · 1 acting · 3 crew1960s6 · 3 acting · 3 crew1970s2 · crew

Billing

usually 5th · top billed in 0% of 8 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 Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30.

How do Fritz Kortner's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 77th percentile, the median of all 8; across their 8 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 80th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

80thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Approval · how many liked their films

76thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Reach · how many have seen their films

68thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Midcredits score across 8 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up4
  • 50th to 74th2
  • 25th to 49th2

Shape of the crowd

4 of their 8 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved1
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser4
  • Mixed2

Most divisive · actor

Weltbrand (1920)

85th percentile spread · 42% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor

Pandora's Box (1929)

Midcredits 93rd · 81% liked

Reviewers score the acting 72/100 in their films, across 7 reviewed titles; fans 78, detractors 47. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; 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 Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove 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 Fritz Kortner work with?

People who share at least 2 of Fritz Kortner's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Reinhold Schünzel shares the most, 2.

Actors

Composers and cinematographers

Producers