Best known to horror fans as Father Lankester Merrin in William Friedkin’s classic The Exorcist, Max von Sydow was a legendary actor who racked up two Oscar nominations and well over 150 acting credits throughout his long career. We’ve learned the sad news this morning that the Swedish actor passed away over the weekend. Von Sydow was 90 years old.
THR reports that the actor “died Sunday, March 8, at his home in Provence, France.”
Max von Sydow’s acting career dates back to 1949, and some of his most notable films include The Seventh Seal, Wild Strawberries, The Virgin Spring, The Greatest Story Ever Told, The Night Visitor, Three Days of the Condor, Flash Gordon, Conan the Barbarian, Strange Brew, Never Say Never Again, Dune, Needful Things, Minority Report and Shutter Island.
Von Sydow’s two Oscar nominations were for Pelle the Conqueror in 1989 (Best Actor in a Leading Role) and Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close in 2012 (Best Actor in a Supporting Role).
The actor’s performance as Father Merrin in The Exorcist, one of the most iconic characters in the history of the horror genre, earned him a Golden Globes nomination in 1974.
It’s fun to note that Von Sydow voiced Vigo the Carpathian in Ghostbusters II and Ghostbusters: The Video Game. His voice was dubbed over Wilhelm von Homburg’s in GB II.
More recently, Von Sydow played Three-Eyed Raven in “Game of Thrones.”