Matthias Schoenaerts is a Belgian actor, film producer, and graffiti artist born on December 8, 1977, in Antwerp, Belgium.
Renowned for his intense performances and physical transformations, he has become a prominent figure in both European and Hollywood cinema.
The son of celebrated Flemish actor Julien Schoenaerts and costume designer Dominique Wiche, Matthias was immersed in the arts from a young age.
His bilingual upbringing in Dutch and French, along with fluency in English, has enabled him to work across diverse film industries.
Schoenaerts made his acting debut at 13 in the Oscar-nominated Belgian film Daens (1992) and has since built a career marked by versatility and critical acclaim.
Siblings
Matthias has three half-siblings through his father, Julien Schoenaerts.
His older half-brother, Bruno Schoenaerts, born in 1953, is a lawyer by profession.
Unlike Matthias and their father, Bruno has pursued a career outside the arts and maintains a private life, with little public information available about his personal or professional endeavors.
Matthias’s half-sister, Helga Schoenaerts, born in 1961, tragically died by suicide in 1982 at the age of 21.
Her passing occurred before Matthias’s rise to fame, and there are no records of her involvement in the entertainment industry.
Another half-sister, Sarah Schoenaerts, born in 1955, passed away in 2014 due to cancer. Like Helga, Sarah did not pursue a career in the public eye, and details about her life are scarce.
Career
Schoenaerts’ career spans over three decades, showcasing his ability to tackle diverse roles in multiple languages and genres.
After his debut in Daens (1992), he appeared in several Belgian films and shorts, including Meisje (2002) and Any Way the Wind Blows (2003).
His breakthrough came with Loft (2008), a Belgian thriller that set box-office records in Belgium, earning over $7 million. In 2011,
Schoenaerts starred as Jacky Vanmarsenille in Bullhead, a gritty drama about a cattle farmer involved in the Belgian hormone mafia.
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The film earned an Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Language Film, and Schoenaerts’ transformative performance, which included gaining 27 pounds of muscle, won him international recognition.
His role as Ali in Rust and Bone (2012) opposite Marion Cotillard further elevated his profile.
The film, directed by Jacques Audiard, premiered at Cannes to a 10-minute standing ovation and was a critical and commercial success.
Schoenaerts’ portrayal of a fighter forming a bond with a whale trainer showcased his emotional depth and physicality.
Schoenaerts transitioned to Hollywood with roles in The Drop (2014) alongside Tom Hardy, Suite Française (2015), Far from the Madding Crowd (2015) with Carey Mulligan, and The Danish Girl (2015) with Eddie Redmayne.
Other notable films include Disorder (2015), where he played an ex-soldier with PTSD, Red Sparrow (2018) with Jennifer Lawrence, and The Mustang (2019), where he portrayed an inmate training wild horses.
Beyond acting, Schoenaerts is a producer, having worked on the Oscar-nominated short Death of a Shadow (2012) and the sci-fi short A Message from Outer Space (2004).
He is also a graffiti artist under the pseudonym “Zenith,” having collaborated with the Bronx group TATS CRU, and co-owns Hakuna Casting, a Belgian agency focused on diverse talent.
Accolades
Schoenaerts won the César Award for Most Promising Actor in 2013 for Rust and Bone, recognizing his breakout role in French cinema.
He also received the Magritte Award for Best Actor in 2012 for Bullhead, honoring his work in Belgian cinema.
At the Palm Springs International Film Festival in 2012, he earned the FIPRESCI Award for Best Actor for Bullhead, with the jury praising his “superb portrayal of an innocent and sensitive man trapped in a truculent body.”
As a producer, he won the European Film Award for Best European Short in 2013 for Death of a Shadow, which was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film.
In 2015, Schoenaerts was named a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters in France for his contributions to the arts.
That same year, he received the Ensor Award for Outstanding Achievement at the Film Festival Oostende, recognizing his impact on Belgian cinema.
He has also been nominated for awards at festivals like Venice for The Mustang and for roles in films like Far from the Madding Crowd and The Danish Girl.
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