Udo Kier is pictured attending the Palm Springs International Film Awards in January 2025. Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images

Udo Kier, the German actor who starred in both European art house and Hollywood movies, collaborating with some of the most significant artists of his time, died on Sunday at age 81, his partner, Delbert McBride, told Variety .

CNN has reached out to Kier’s agent for comment.

After rising to fame in cult horror movies in the mid-1970s, Kier made a prolific career of portraying villains with a distinct flair.

Over six decades, he amassed more than 250 credits, collaborating with some of the most celebrated filmmakers of his time — Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Lars von Trier, Gus Van Sant and Werner Herzog — as well as other artists, like Madonna and Andy Warhol.

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