Games of Thrones and Exorcist Star Max Von Sydow Dead at 90

Max Von Sydow, who amassed over 160 acting credits over the course of his life, has died at the age of 90. He’s known to more recent TV viewers for his role as the Three-Eye Raven on Game of Thrones.

Max Von Sydow Passes Away

The Associated Press reported von Sydow’s passing. According to his agent, Jean Diamond, the actor died on Sunday in France.

“It is with a broken heart and with infinite sadness that we have the extreme pain of announcing the departure of Max von Sydow,” Diamond said.

Born April 10, 1929, in Sweden, von Sydow’s birth name was Carl Adolf von Sydow but he later changed his first name to Max, noting that his birth middle name was “not a good name” after World War II.

To many, von Sydow is best known for his role as Father Merrin, the priest in the cult classic 1973 film The Exorcist, which earned him a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a feature film.

The actor more recently received a nomination for a Primetime Emmy for his performance on Game of Thrones. While often cast as a villain, the actor searched for a variety of roles throughout his career. “It is very boring to be stuck in more or less one type of character,” he said once.

Other memorable roles include his turn as Ming the Merciless in Flash Gordon (1980) and Ernst Blofeld in the James Bond movie Never Say Never Again (1983) in which Sean Connery once again took on the role of 007.

Like many actors, von Sydow was shy as a youngster. “When I started acting in an amateur group in high school, although I wasn’t aware of it [my shyness] at the time, I suddenly got a tool in my hand that was wonderful,” he once told the AP. “I was allowed to express all kinds of strange things that I never dared to express before. Now I could do it with the character as a shield, as a defense, and as an excuse. I think that for many years I used my profession as some kind of a mental therapy.”

In 2002, von Sydow became a French citizen. He was married twice. His first bride was actress Christina Olin in 1981; he then wed Catherine Brelet, a French filmmaker in 1997. He had two sons with each wife: Clas and Henrick; and Yvan and Cedric. Entertainment Hub sends sincere condolences to von Sydow’s family at this difficult time.