Austrian actor Peter Simonischek (pictured on February 27, 2018 in Prague).
Vienna – Austrian film and theater actor Peter Simonischek died at the age of 76. He is known, for example, as the lead actor in the Austrian comedy Toni Erdmann, which was nominated for an Oscar in 2017. The APA agency wrote today that Simonischek, who died last night, is one of Austria's most popular actors. He also played the main role in the Slovak-Czech film The Interpreter directed by Martin Šulík, where he played alongside the director and actor Jiří Menzel.
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Simonischek died at home in Vienna surrounded by his family, the Vienna Burgtheater confirmed. Simonischek was known to international audiences mainly for the comedy about the complicated relationship between father and daughter Toni Erdmann. The film was nominated for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film in 2017.
At the Salzburg Festival between 2002 and 2009, Simonischek played the lead role in Hugo von Hofmannsthal's drama Everybody (Jedermann), which is performed at the event every year . According to the DPA agency, he played the role of a rich man who is slowly but surely being overtaken by death more than a hundred times – more often than anyone else.
During the filming of the road movie Tlumočník, Simonischek became close to Jiří Menzel, for whom it was the last acting opportunity. The film deals with the relationship between the sons of the perpetrator and the victim of the Holocaust. In it, Simonischek played the role of an Austrian teacher, a bon vivant with a weakness for women and alcohol.
Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen also expressed his condolences to the actor's family today. “Who doesn't know Peter Simonischek? His portrayal of Toni Erdmann caused an international stir. But much more, Peter Simonischek was an artist who remained true to himself in every transformation,” Van der Bellen said on Twitter.
