Jan Niklas
Encyclopedia
Jan Niklas is a German
actor
. He is best known for playing in TV films such as Peter The Great
, Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna
and Anne Frank: The Whole Story
. He also played in the Hungarian
film Colonel Redl
which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
.
, near Nuremberg, Germany. After attending boarding school in England, he took acting classes in London, following this he completed three years of acting classess at the Max Reinhardt Academy in Berlin
.
as Juniorchef. After playing in a couple of TV movies and miniseries Niklas slowly gained populairity, his breakthrough came in 1985, when he was cast to have a supporting role in István Szabó
's war film Oberst Redl
. But things went really well when in 1986 he was cast to portray a young Peter the Great
in the miniseries Peter the Great, a lot of newspapers and magazines stated that it was Niklas' performance that made the miniseries so believable, the Miami Herald stated:
"It’s Niklas’ vigorously effective portrayal of the younger Peter that hooks a viewer into caring about this legendary figure. Due to his energetic performance the first two parts of “Peter the Great” are the most absorbing",
the TV Guide
stated that Niklas was the Discovery of the year 1986. Niklas got the Golden Globe nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television but lost it to James Woods
(Promise
). However, later that same year, his "style and flair" was recognized throughout the industry, and brought him to the historical drama Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna in which he portrayed Prince Erich, The Boston Globe
called it "A Performance Worth Remembering" Niklas won the Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television for his performance. After this Niklas played in movies such as: The Rosegarden, Dr. M
, Red Hot and The House of the Spirits
. He stayed unnoticed for a while, until in 2001 he was cast to portray Fritz Pfeffer
in the Emmy Award
- winning miniseries Anne Frank: The Whole Story
. Which was, according to the Detroit News, "Completely Believable". His latest appearance was in the German film Die Zeit, die man Leben nennt.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
. He is best known for playing in TV films such as Peter The Great
Peter the Great (TV Series)
Peter the Great is a 1986 NBC television mini-series starring Maximilian Schell as Russian leader Peter the Great, and based on the biography by Robert K. Massie. It won three Primetime Emmy Awards, including the award for Outstanding Miniseries....
, Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna
Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna
Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna is a 1986 TV movie, starring Amy Irving, Olivia de Havilland and Jan Niklas. The film was loosely based on the story of Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia and the novel The Riddle of Anna Anderson by Peter Kurth. It was Christian Bale's first film and Rex...
and Anne Frank: The Whole Story
Anne Frank: The Whole Story
Anne Frank: The Whole Story is a mini-series based on the book Anne Frank: The Biography by Melissa Müller. The mini-series aired on ABC on May 20 and 21, 2001. The series starred :Ben Kingsley, :Brenda Blethyn, :Hannah Taylor-Gordon, and :Lili Taylor...
. He also played in the Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
film Colonel Redl
Oberst Redl
Colonel Redl ; ) is a 1985 drama film by Hungarian director István Szabó. It tells the life story of an Austrian Imperial military officer Alfred Redl who was blackmailed into espionage for the Russian secret service to prevent the revelation of his homosexuality...
which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
.
Early life
Jan Niklas was born October 15, 1947 in PottensteinPottenstein
Pottenstein is a town in the district of Bayreuth, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated 23 km southwest of Bayreuth, and 26 km east of Forchheim.-History:During World War II, a subcamp of Flossenburg concentration camp was located here....
, near Nuremberg, Germany. After attending boarding school in England, he took acting classes in London, following this he completed three years of acting classess at the Max Reinhardt Academy in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
.
Career
Niklas made his first television appearance on an episode of the German TV series Sonderdezernat K1Sonderdezernat K1
Sonderdezernat K1 is a German television series....
as Juniorchef. After playing in a couple of TV movies and miniseries Niklas slowly gained populairity, his breakthrough came in 1985, when he was cast to have a supporting role in István Szabó
István Szabó
István Szabó is a Hungarian film director, screenwriter, and opera director.Szabó is the most internationally famous Hungarian filmmaker since the late 1960s. Working in the tradition of European, auteurist art cinema, he has made films that represent many of the psychological and political...
's war film Oberst Redl
Oberst Redl
Colonel Redl ; ) is a 1985 drama film by Hungarian director István Szabó. It tells the life story of an Austrian Imperial military officer Alfred Redl who was blackmailed into espionage for the Russian secret service to prevent the revelation of his homosexuality...
. But things went really well when in 1986 he was cast to portray a young Peter the Great
Peter the Great (TV Series)
Peter the Great is a 1986 NBC television mini-series starring Maximilian Schell as Russian leader Peter the Great, and based on the biography by Robert K. Massie. It won three Primetime Emmy Awards, including the award for Outstanding Miniseries....
in the miniseries Peter the Great, a lot of newspapers and magazines stated that it was Niklas' performance that made the miniseries so believable, the Miami Herald stated:
"It’s Niklas’ vigorously effective portrayal of the younger Peter that hooks a viewer into caring about this legendary figure. Due to his energetic performance the first two parts of “Peter the Great” are the most absorbing",
the TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
stated that Niklas was the Discovery of the year 1986. Niklas got the Golden Globe nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television but lost it to James Woods
James Woods
James Howard Woods is an American film, stage and television actor. Woods is known for starring in critically acclaimed films such as Once Upon a Time in America, Salvador, Nixon, Ghosts of Mississippi, Casino, and in the television legal drama Shark. He has won three Emmy Awards, and has gained...
(Promise
Promise
A promise is a commitment by someone to do or not do something.In the law of contract, an exchange of promises is usually held to be legally enforceable, according to the Latin maxim pacta sunt servanda.- Types :...
). However, later that same year, his "style and flair" was recognized throughout the industry, and brought him to the historical drama Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna in which he portrayed Prince Erich, The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...
called it "A Performance Worth Remembering" Niklas won the Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television for his performance. After this Niklas played in movies such as: The Rosegarden, Dr. M
Dr. M
Dr. M. may refer to:*Dr. M , a 1990 film starring Andrew McCarthy*Dr M or Mahathir bin Mohamad, fourth Prime Minister of Malaysia*Dr. M, the main antagonist of Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves...
, Red Hot and The House of the Spirits
The House of the Spirits
The House of the Spirits is the debut novel by Isabel Allende. Initially, the novel was rejected by several Spanish-language publishers, but became an instant best seller when published in Barcelona in 1982. The novel was critically acclaimed around the world, and catapulted Allende to literary...
. He stayed unnoticed for a while, until in 2001 he was cast to portray Fritz Pfeffer
Fritz Pfeffer
Friedrich "Fritz" Pfeffer was a German dentist and Jewish refugee who hid with Anne Frank during the Nazi Occupation of the Netherlands, and who perished in the Neuengamme concentration camp in Northern Germany...
in the Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
- winning miniseries Anne Frank: The Whole Story
Anne Frank: The Whole Story
Anne Frank: The Whole Story is a mini-series based on the book Anne Frank: The Biography by Melissa Müller. The mini-series aired on ABC on May 20 and 21, 2001. The series starred :Ben Kingsley, :Brenda Blethyn, :Hannah Taylor-Gordon, and :Lili Taylor...
. Which was, according to the Detroit News, "Completely Believable". His latest appearance was in the German film Die Zeit, die man Leben nennt.
Selected filmography
| Title | Year | Role |
|---|---|---|
| :Oberst Redl | 1985 | Kubinyi Kristof |
| Peter the Great Peter the Great (TV Series) Peter the Great is a 1986 NBC television mini-series starring Maximilian Schell as Russian leader Peter the Great, and based on the biography by Robert K. Massie. It won three Primetime Emmy Awards, including the award for Outstanding Miniseries.... (TV movie) |
1986 | Young Peter the Great |
| Dr. M Dr. M (film) Dr. M. is a 1990 film co-written and directed by Claude Chabrol. The film is a remake of 1922's Fritz Lang's Dr. Mabuse the Gambler, which was in turn based on Mabuse der Spieler by Norbert Jacques.-Plot:... |
1990 | Lt. Hartman |
| Red Hot | 1993 | Yorgi |
| The House of the Spirits The House of the Spirits The House of the Spirits is the debut novel by Isabel Allende. Initially, the novel was rejected by several Spanish-language publishers, but became an instant best seller when published in Barcelona in 1982. The novel was critically acclaimed around the world, and catapulted Allende to literary... |
1993 | Count de Satigny |
| Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna is a 1986 TV movie, starring Amy Irving, Olivia de Havilland and Jan Niklas. The film was loosely based on the story of Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia and the novel The Riddle of Anna Anderson by Peter Kurth. It was Christian Bale's first film and Rex... (TV movie) |
1986 | Prince Erich |
| Anne Frank: The Whole Story Anne Frank: The Whole Story Anne Frank: The Whole Story is a mini-series based on the book Anne Frank: The Biography by Melissa Müller. The mini-series aired on ABC on May 20 and 21, 2001. The series starred :Ben Kingsley, :Brenda Blethyn, :Hannah Taylor-Gordon, and :Lili Taylor... (TV movie) |
2001 | Fritz Pfeffer Fritz Pfeffer Friedrich "Fritz" Pfeffer was a German dentist and Jewish refugee who hid with Anne Frank during the Nazi Occupation of the Netherlands, and who perished in the Neuengamme concentration camp in Northern Germany... |
| Plain Truth Plain Truth Plain Truth is a novel written by Jodi Picoult about a murder on an Amish farm, first published in 2001.-Plot summary:The book tells the story of how a dead infant found on an Amish farm shakes the entire community. As the police investigate the death, they discover that the baby was not stillborn,... (TV movie) |
2004 | Aaron Fitch |
| Summer Solstice Summer solstice The summer solstice occurs exactly when the axial tilt of a planet's semi-axis in a given hemisphere is most inclined towards the star that it orbits. Earth's maximum axial tilt to our star, the Sun, during a solstice is 23° 26'. Though the summer solstice is an instant in time, the term is also... (TV movie) |
2005 | Oscar |
| Die Zeit, die man Leben nennt (TV movie) | 2008 | Jargonov |
External links
- Official Website
- Jan Niklas at Yahoo! MoviesYahoo! MoviesYahoo! Movies , provided by the Yahoo! network, is home to a large collection of information on movies, past and new releases, trailers and clips, box office information, and showtimes and movie theater information. Yahoo! Movies also includes red carpet photos, actor galleries, and production...