The film industry lost an incredible talent this weekend. French actor Max von Sydow, star of countless classics such as Pelle the Conqueror, The Exorcist, and The Seventh Seal, has died at the age of 90.
His widow, Catherine von Sydow, confirmed his passing in a statement sent to Deadline and France’s Paris Match. “It is with a broken heart and with infinite sadness that we have the extreme pain of announcing the departure of Max von Sydow, on March 8, 2020,” she wrote.
Sydow’s career spanned nearly seven decades. The actor had a close working relationship with another legend, Swedish filmmaker Ingmar Bergman, who is regarded as one of the greatest directors of all time. Their collaborations ultimately led to thirteen incredible films, which include 1957’s The Seventh Seal, a drama about a medieval knight (Sydow) who faces off against death (Bengt Ekerot) in a chess match.
More recently, Sydow took on the role of Lar San Tekka in Star Wars: The Force Awakens and the Three-eyed Raven in the sixth season of Game of Thrones. The actor also did plenty of work outside of film, having voiced Esbern in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Claus Sigler in a 2014 episode of The Simpsons.