A biography for Max von Sydowhasn’t been written yet.
“It's important to me to work in my own language now and then. I love English, but you can never learn to master a foreign language if you're not brought up with it.”
“Hiroshima has become a metaphor not just for nuclear war but for war and destruction and violence toward civilians. It's not just the idea we should not use nuclear arms. We should not start another war because it's madness.”
“My father was a professor of folklore, and my mother was a teacher until she was married. I had a good relationship with them, and the only argument we had was when I went to university and wanted to go into the theater instead of studying to be a lawyer.”
“Bergman was courageous in choosing people to do things that they themselves might not expect to play.”
“All of us, we deserve to survive.”
“I understand German; I can read German.”
“If Jesus came back today, and saw what was going on in his name, he'd never stop throwing up.”
“The studio rented a house for my wife in Los Angeles under a phony name to keep reporters away. Whenever I wanted to visit her and my children, I would have to sneak in the back door after dark.”
“I began imagining scenes in public which some drunk would come up to me and slap me in the face. Nothing like that ever happened, but I often wonder if I would have turned the other cheek.”
“Playing the role of Christ was like being in a prison. It was the hardest part I've ever had to play in my life. I couldn't smoke or drink in public. I couldn't.”
“It's not a matter of learning lines. It's a matter of getting into the ideas and the will of the person. It's a matter of, 'What does he want to do? What does he want to achieve?'”
“In a theater, the part is mine and I can control it as I want to. In the movies, I don't have direct contact, and I am fighting technical machinery.”
“I don't believe in devils. Indifference and misunderstandings can create evil situations. Most of the time, people who appear to be evil are really victims of evil deeds.”
“Mr. Bergman had a great imagination and saw the possibilities within every one of his actors, and he gave us great challenges. It was very inspiring.”
“I think it's good that we're sometimes reminded of important events in history.”
“In this country, you have movie actors and theatre actors and television actors.”
“My parents were brought up in families which believed theatre people weren't to be trusted. But they were nice people.”
“I would like to do 'King Lear.' But I would like to do it in Swedish.”
“All my life I've been looking for diversity.”
“Between you and me, odd things happen always on set.”