Mia Farrow and Edgar Wright lead tributes to late actor Max von Sydow

Max von Sydow has passed away in France, age 90
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George Fenwick9 March 2020
The Weekender

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Mia Farrow and Edgar Wright are among those who have paid tribute to the late Swedish actor Max von Sydow, who has died at the age of 90.

Von Sydow was known for his collaborations with Swedish director Ingmar Bergman, before he found success in Hollywood with roles in The Exorcist and Hannah and Her Sisters.

More recently, von Sydow was known for his roles in Star Wars: The Force Awakens and as the Three-Eyed Raven in Game of Thrones.

Wright called von Sydow an “iconic presence in cinema for seven decades,” adding that it “seemed like he’d always be with us”.

Von Sydow died at the age of 90
AFP via Getty Images

“He changed the face of international film with Bergman, played Christ, fought the devil, pressed the HOT HAIL button & was Oscar nominated for a silent performance. A god.”

Farrow shared an image of von Sydow with his friend, cinematographer Sven Nykvist.

“We were working on Bora Bora," she wrote. "I picture Max in heaven wearing his white linen suit, w [sic] Sven, Ingmar Bergman, Bibi Andersson, laughing & loving each other.”

Film critic Guy Lodge called von Sydow “an actor who could bring great gravity to weightless junk, and quick, unpredictable humanity to, well, very grave films. His run of collaborations with Bergman have so much more life and electricity than the dour reputation with which people tag them.”

The Twitter account for Bethesda Game Studios - developers of Skyrim, in which von Sydow voiced the character Esbern - called the actor a “true legend”.

Von Sydow’s agent confirmed the actor had passed away at his home in France.

A statement said: “It is with a broken heart and with infinite sadness that we have the extreme pain of announcing the departure of Max von Sydow, March 8, 2020.”

He was nominated for two Oscars in his time: one for Best Actor in 1989 for Pelle the Conquerer, and most recently for Best Supporting Actor for 2012’s Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.

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