RIP Hark Bohm

 

Filmmaker Hark Bohm has died at the age of 86

Bunte

November 14, 2025

 

Hark Bohm has died at the age of 86. The Hamburg director and actor leaves a big gap. His former student and long-time companion Fatih Akin, with whom he most recently made the partly autobiographical film "Amrum", says goodbye on Instagram with moving words.

The Hamburg director and screenwriter Hark Bohm (1939–2025) has died. The news was confirmed, among others, by his long-time student Fatih Akin (52), with whom Bohm had most recently worked on the current feature film "Amrum", which premiered in Cannes in 2025. According to media reports, the actor, author, director and producer died on Friday at the age of 86 surrounded by his family in Hamburg.

"My friend and master Hark Bohm has passed away. The lighthouse is extinguished. Hark's soul continues to breathe in his unique work," Akin wrote on Instagram to a joint photo. Akin also wrote about a picture of a sunset on the beach: "Goodbye, my dear, faithful friend..."

Fatih Akin and his mentor Hark Bohm worked together several times. Among other things, in 2017 for Akin's internationally successful drama "Out of the Fade", in which Hollywood star Diane Kruger (49) played the leading role. After a long hiatus, Hark Bohm caused a sensation again in 2025: Fatih Akin directed the film "Amrum" at his request, which is based on Bohm's screenplay and his autobiographically inspired novel of the same name. This is about his childhood experiences in the last days of the Second World War in his home village on the German North Sea island of Amrum. Diane Kruger is once again part of the cast of the film.

Hark Bohm: A formative voice of German cinema

Bohm became known above all for productions such as "Nordsee ist Mordsee" (1976), "Moritz, lieber Moritz" (1978) or "Yasemin" (1988). For the latter film, he received the Federal Film Award in Gold. For decades, Bohm was considered one of the defining voices of German auteur and up-and-coming cinema.

In addition to his work for film and television, he was a co-founder of the Hamburg Film Office and for a long time a central figure of the so-called "Hamburg School", which was characterized by realistic material, social issues and the promotion of young filmmakers.

As an actor, Bohm also appeared in numerous films by his close friend and companion Werner Herzog (83), including "Jeder für sich und Gott gegen alle" (1974) and "Stroszek" (1977), which also brought him international fame. In her first marriage, Bohm was married to Angela Luther (85), who later became an RAF terrorist and is still a fugitive today. With his second wife Natalia, he adopted four children and looked after two other foster children. He is also survived by nine grandchildren.

BOHM, Hark

Born: 5/18/1939, Othmarschen, Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

Died: 11/14/2025, Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

 

Hark Bohm’s western – producer, director, writer:

Chetan, Indian Boy – 1972