KINO favorites: 7 international stars from Germany

Born in 1978 in Bucharest as Alexandra Maria Platareanu, her parents fled Romania for Germany in 1983 and, with a new surname, she debuted on TV at age 11. In the 2004 hit Downfall she played Hitler's secretary, and soon after was working alongside Kate Winslet in The Reader, her now husband Sam Riley in Joy Division biopic Control (pictured), and with Daniel Brühl in the Hollywood drama Rush.

Following a breakout role in Tom Tykwer's international hit Run Lola Run in 1998, a kiss in the 2001 film Blow with heartthrob Johnny Depp started the Hollywood career of actor Franka Potente. She followed that up with a role in The Bourne Identity the following year (above, with Matt Damon). More recently, she has appeared in numerous US series such as Taboo — and has written several books.

Since Berlin-born August Diehl stormed the international cinema stage with his turn in Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds (2009) — not as King Kong but an evil SS officer — the actor has been a regular feature in films made beyond his homeland, including Night Train to Lisbon alongside Jeremy Irons, as the eponymous character in The Young Karl Marx and the BBC war series, Close to the Enemy.

The Uganda-born, Germany-raised actor who today lives in Berlin has conquered Hollywood in recent years with roles in superhero franchise films like Wonder Woman (2017) and the Marvel epics Captain America: Civil War (2016), Avengers: Infinity War (2018). Early this year, she also had a major role in the blockbuster Black Panther playing Ayo, the king's head of security (pictured right).

When Quentin Tarantino gave Waltz the role of SS officer Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds, the Vienna-born actor stole the show and won the Oscar for best supporting actor. He picked up another Oscar, and a place in Hollywood's acting elite, for his turn as bounty hunter King Schultz in Django Unchained (2012). The Berlin-based Waltz also played the villain in the 2015 James Bond film Spectre.

Another German actor who gained global renown for her lead role in Inglorious Basterds, Kruger, a former fashion model, had already got her start in Hollywood when she played Helen in 2004's Troy alongside Brad Pitt, and also appeared that year in Wicker Park. Now an American citizen, Kruger won best actress at Cannes in 2017 for her first German role in Fatih Akin's In the Fade (above).

The international film career of Barcelona-born Daniel Brühl began rather unexpectedly when his German comedy Goodbye Lenin! (2003) became a global hit. The Berliner has since been a Hollywood regular, with roles in The Bourne Ultimatum and the Julian Assange biopic The Fifth Estate. He recently won plaudits, and a Golden Globe nomination, for his turn as Niki Lauda in Ron Howard's Rush (2013).