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Otto Waalkes

Otto Waalkes

Actor, writer and director, also composer and producer · Born July 22, 1948 (78) · Emden, Germany

Otto Waalkes, born in Emden in 1948, ranks among the most successful German comedians of all time. He first gained widespread recognition in the mid-1970s through his comedy albums and his own television show. By the mid-1980s—culminating with the release of his first feature film, *Otto – Der Film*—he had risen to the status of an absolute superstar. With a box-office tally of over 14 million viewers, this comedy is considered the most successful German film of all time. The following years saw the release of further installments in the "Otto" film series, all of which went on to become major hits. After a period of relative quiet in the late 1990s, Otto Waalkes staged a major comeback in 2004 with the film *7 Zwerge – Männer allein im Wald* (7 Dwarfs – Men Alone in the Woods). This ensemble comedy drew more than seven million moviegoers to theaters and was followed in 2006 by an equally successful sequel. In the new millennium, Otto established himself as a voice actor for animated films such as *Ice Age*. Although Otto Waalkes is frequently criticized for his allegedly simplistic and silly brand of humor, his films consistently find an audience.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
July 22, 1948 (78)
From
Emden, Germany
Works as
Actor, writer and director, also composer and producer
Titles
9 on MovieCove · 37 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Official site (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 38 days to Oct 27Down 12% in 30 days

What are Otto Waalkes' films like?

Across their 7 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Society.

Themes

share of theme weight
Bonds
84%
Society
10%
Self
6%
Romantic love4 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship5 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 7 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Wry: How sincerely it treats its story and characters, from ironic to earnest. Browse their wry movies.
Tone · Sincerity
ironicearnest

A split, not a type: Ironic 3 · Wry 0 · Earnest 4

Light: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their light movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 7 · Serious 0 · Dark 0

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

Grounded 1 · Stylized 4 · Heightened 2

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

Gentle 5 · Charged 2 · Intense 0

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

Steady 6 · Shifting 0 · Whiplash 1

Funny: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their funny movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 0 · Some laughs 2 · Funny 5

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

Slow burn 4 · Even-paced 3 · Relentless 0

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

Casual 7 · Engaged 0 · Full focus 0

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

Resolved 7 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0

Roles they play

5 analyzed roles

Usually the Hero: 4 of 5 analyzed roles.

Hero
4 of 5
Shapeshifter
1 of 5

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Joyful
7
Absurd
5
Warm
2
Thrilling
2

How their films linger

Fun7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy7

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 Otto Waalkes' films?

As of October 24, 2026, 4 of their 9 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (4).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Otto Waalkes' 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

37 credits, 9 with a MovieCove page; 61 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Seiler und Speer: A schware Partie 25 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    as Otto Waalkes

  • Otto Fröhliche - Advent, Advents mit Otto und Friends (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    as Various

  • Help, I Shrunk My Friends(2021)

    as Otto Leonhard

    Midcredits score: 11th percentile of all films

  • Catweazle (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    Screenplay · as Catweazle

  • Geheimakte Otto Waalkes - Harry Hirsch auf Spurensuche (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2018)

    as Harry Hirsch

  • Help, I Shrunk My Parents(2018)

    as Otto Leonhard

    Midcredits score: 16th percentile of all films

  • Udo Lindenberg: Stärker als die Zeit - Live (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)

    Actor

  • Help, I Shrunk My Teacher(2015)

    as Spirit of the school founder Otto Leonhard

    Midcredits score: 18th percentile of all films

  • Potato Salad: Don't Ask! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)

    Composer · as Notrufbeantworter

  • The Time Carousel (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)

    as Wilhelm Tell

  • The Seventh Dwarf(2014)

    Producer · Writer · as Bubi (voice)

    Midcredits score: 12th percentile of all films

  • Otto's Traum (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)

    as Otto

  • Best of Otto (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2012)

    Actor

  • Otto's Eleven (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)

    Screenplay · as Otto

  • Lissi und der wilde Kaiser(2007)

    Thanks

    Midcredits score: 25th percentile of all films

  • 7 Dwarves: The Forest Is Not Enough(2006)

    Producer · Writer · as Bubi

    Midcredits score: 9th percentile of all films

  • Siegfried(2005)

    as Grille (voice)

    Midcredits score: 3rd percentile of all films

  • Otto - Die ersten 15 Jahre und mehr! (Goldedition) (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)

    Actor

  • Crazy Race 2 - Warum die Mauer wirklich fiel (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    as Scientist

  • 7 Zwerge(2004)

    Producer · Screenplay · as Bubi

    Midcredits score: 17th percentile of all films

  • Otto - Die DVD (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)

    Actor

  • Genial daneben (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

  • Otto - Mein Ostfriesland und mehr (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2001)

    Actor

  • Kommando Störtebeker (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2001)

    Characters · as Bruno Bommel / Papagei

  • Otto - The Disaster Movie (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2000)

    Screenplay · as Otto, Baby-Otto, Otti, Großvater

  • St. Pauli Nacht (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)

    Actor

  • Otto – The Series (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1995)

    Show 13 episodes · Director · Creator · Writer · as Verschiedene

  • RTL Samstag Nacht (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1993)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

  • Ottifants (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1993)

    Show 13 episodes · Creator · Writer · as Baby Bruno Bommel

  • Otto - The Romance Film (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1992)

    Director · Composer · Screenplay · as Karl/Otto/Amor

  • Otto – The Alien from East Frisia (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1989)

    Director · Author · as Otto / Benno Gross

  • Otto - Der Neue Film(1987)

    Director · Composer · Screenplay · as Otto

    Midcredits score: 33rd percentile of all films

  • Otto - The Movie (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1985)

    Director · Screenplay · as Otto / Otto's Father (voice) / Otto's Mother (voice) / Mr. Astrid (voice)

  • Ronny’s Pop Show (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)

    Show 1 episode · as Ronny (voice)

  • The Otto-Show (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)

    Show 9 episodes · Creator · as Otto Waalkes

  • Happy Otto! Wir haben Grund zum Feiern (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Show Creator

  • Offifanten (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Show Creator

Career shape

Star power in the 98th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 37 titles, 35 of them dated from 1973 to 2025; peak year 2005.

Biggest box office

7 Zwerge (2004)

$58M worldwide

Highest rated

Otto - Der Neue Film (1987)

Midcredits 33rd

Most popular right now

The Seventh Dwarf (2014)

Film career

19732025

Peak 2005 · back in prominent film roles after a quiet stretch. Top draw in 2 MovieCove titles. 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.

  • 1985Screen debut· Otto - The Movie
  • 1985First top-billed film· Otto - The Movie

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting34 of 37: 19 only acting, 15 with another role · typical Midcredits score14thDirecting5 of 37: 0 only directing, 5 with another roleWriting12 of 37: 0 only writing, 12 with another roleProducing3 of 37: 0 only producing, 3 with another roleMusic3 of 37: 0 only music, 3 with another roleOther crew6 of 37: 3 only other crew, 3 with another role

37 titles, 15 with more than one role — acting and writing overlap on 12 of them.

By decade

1970s1 · 1 acting · 1 crew1980s4 · 4 acting · 3 crew1990s5 · 5 acting · 3 crew2000s11 · 10 acting · 5 crew2010s10 · 10 acting · 3 crew2020s4 · 4 acting · 1 crew

Billing

usually 1st · top billed in 67% of 15 roles
8505

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; the columns are the share of top-billed roles in each era, 5-year spans from the year on the label, merged until each holds at least 5 roles.

How do Otto Waalkes' films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 16th percentile, the median of all 9; across their 7 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 18th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

18thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 7

Approval · how many liked their films

10thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 7

Reach · how many have seen their films

71stpercentile
Typical film, the median of 7

Midcredits score across 9 titles, by percentile

  • 25th to 49th2
  • Below 25th7

Shape of the crowd

6 of their 9 titles are Mixed.

  • Universally Panned2
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed6

Most divisive · actor

Siegfried (2005)

59th percentile spread · 62% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor, director, writer, composer

Otto - Der Neue Film (1987)

Midcredits 33rd · 32% liked

Reviewers score the acting 41/100 in their films, across 5 reviewed titles; fans 66, detractors 27. 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 Otto Waalkes work with?

People who share at least 2 of Otto Waalkes' MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Sven Unterwaldt Jr. shares the most, 4.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers