Even five days after “Mirror”article in which Til Schweiger is accused of violence, verbal abuse and drunkenness, the German acting and directing star behind hit movies like “Honig im Kopf” and currently “Manta Manta 2” has not commented on the allegations himself. That’s why others do it.
Actress Nora Tschirner, who shot the very successful comedies “Keinohrhasen” (2007) and “Zweiohrküken” (2009) with Schweiger, called it an open secret on Instagram that the conditions described in “Spiegel” prevailed on sets in Germany. Film producer Nina Maag now speaks in the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” about the fact that Schweiger only “the tip of the iceberg of a toxic system” may be.
This refers to the German film industry, in which Schweiger has been working for more than 30 years – since 1990 as an actor, since 1997 as a producer and since 1998 also as a director.
According to Maag, the first priority is making money
Maag now works for the production company Bavaria Fiction, from 2012 to 2013 she managed the branch of Barefoot Films in Munich before she left the company in a dispute with company boss Schweiger. She sees the director as part of an industry who tolerate abuse of power – simply because it is first and foremost about making money.
Maag opposite the “Süddeutsche Zeitung“: “This industry is about nepotism and abuse of power. And it cannot be the case that employees who use the weak points of the system in the sense of an improvement want to be silenced quite obviously.“
Schweiger was accused in “Spiegel” of having behaved aggressively and insultingly on several film sets. A case is also described where he is said to have hit an employee of the current cinema hit “Manta Manta 2” in the face, while Schweiger was drunk.
Allegations against Dieter Wedel
In 2017, allegations were made against another great of German film, director Dieter Wedel, who died in 2022, who is said to have bullied his actors on sets with his behavior. There were also allegations of sexual assault.
Discrimination is apparently normal in German film
After the Harvey Weinstein scandal in 2017, the German film industry reacted by setting up a trust center against sexual harassment and violence, called Themis. In one study, half of the 3,200 filmmakers surveyed admitted to having experienced discrimination at work. However, 57 percent of those affected kept this experience to themselves. This result also suggests that the problems in the industry go far beyond the Schweiger case.
Minister of State for Culture Claudia Roth (Greens) has meanwhile called for more measures to protect against sexual discrimination and violence from the culture and media industry. With a view to the current reporting on allegations on the film set of the actor and director Til Schweiger, Roth said on Tuesday in Berlin that even artistic geniuses – or allegedly artistic geniuses – are not above the law.
According to Roth, the culture industry should now be under the leadership of the German Cultural Council provide a code of conduct. According to the Minister of State for Culture, the first step is to make a binding commitment on the part of the industry. If that is not enough, the federal government wants to take the next step and make certain guidelines for funding binding.
Schweiger’s professional future
What’s next for Til Schweiger professionally? After the two box office flops “Dear Kurt” and “The Rescue of the World Known to Us” it initially looked as if Schweiger had lost contact with German cinema audiences, “Manta Manta 2” brought the turning point. The start of the tragic comedy “The best is yet to come!” is on the calendar for December 7, 2023, Schweiger’s already wacky new directorial work, which will be released in cinemas like the hit “Manta Manta 2” by Constantin Film.
It is currently unclear whether the “Spiegel” article has professional consequences for Schweiger. (with KNA)
