Maximilian Schell was an Austrian and Swiss actor director, producer and writer of several of his own films. His family, who vehemently opposed the Nazis fled to Zürich following the 1938 Anschluss, in which Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany. He served the Swiss army during 1948-49 and post ‘Second World War’, he began his acting career onstage and in West German films, which were mostly based on anti-war themes. Later he followed his sister actress Maria Schell’s footsteps to Hollywood where he made his debut with the film, ‘The Young Lions’. His second film in Hollywood, ‘Judgment at Nuremberg’ won him ‘Academy Award for Best Actor’, ‘Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama’ and also ‘New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor’. His ability to speak both in German and English soon saw him performing in a number of films of the Nazi-era themes. He also portrayed imminent personalities such as scientist Albert Einstein, Russian emperor Peter the Great and the Venezuelan leader Simón Bolívar. He received the ‘Golden Globe Award’ for essaying the role of Vladimir Lenin in the TV film, ‘Stalin’. Many consider his portrayal of ‘Hamlet’ onstage as "one of the greatest Hamlets ever”.