Austrian actor Johannes Krisch, star of 'Revanche' and 'Braunschlag', dies at 59 after cancer fight

Death announced by the Theater in der Josefstadt

Johannes Krisch died on Monday morning, 27 July 2026, in a Vienna hospital at the age of 59. The Theater in der Josefstadt, where he was a long-standing ensemble member, confirmed the news to the Austrian Press Agency (APA). Krisch was born on 8 December 1966 in Vienna and had been a defining presence in Austrian theatre, film and television for decades.

His agent Daniela Fruhmann told Bild newspaper that the actor had fought a prolonged battle with cancer. "Johannes hat einen langen Kampf gegen den Krebs geführt. Das letzte halbe Jahr war für ihn sehr schwierig, er musste sich eine Auszeit nehmen," she said. She added that Krisch was a fighter who never gave up despite the illness. The specific type of cancer was not disclosed publicly.

A commanding screen and stage presence

Krisch became known to a broad audience through television series including David Schalko's hit comedy "Braunschlag" (2012) and multiple episodes of the ARD crime series "Tatort," where he appeared four times, most recently in 2018. He also took roles in "Kommissar Rex" and various "SOKO" series. His breakthrough in international cinema came with Götz Spielmann's Oscar-nominated drama "Revanche" in 2008, where Krisch played the lead role.

In 2013 he appeared alongside Oscar-nominated German actress Sandra Hüller in "Finsterworld," and in 2017 he acted opposite Hollywood star Diane Kruger in "Aus dem Nichts" ("In the Fade"). His portrayal of serial killer Jack Unterweger in the 2015 film "Jack" earned him the Austrian Film Prize for best leading actor. In 2022 Krisch took the role of Elias, a man who retreats from society, in Adrian Goiginger's "Märzengrund." On stage at the Theater in der Josefstadt he performed in "Der Bockerer" as a stubborn butcher who refuses to cooperate with the Nazis.

Tributes from the theatre world

Herbert Föttinger, former director of the Theater in der Josefstadt, paid tribute to Krisch as "einen der bedeutendsten Schauspieler seiner Generation", one of the most significant actors of his generation. Föttinger praised Krisch's rare ability to inhabit characters fully in the moment and to draw the audience into that experience.

Johannes Krisch besaß die seltene Gabe, Figuren nicht zu spielen, sondern sie im Augenblick zu erleben — und das Publikum daran teilhaben zu lassen.

Krisch himself once described his pre-performance ritual in characteristically earthy terms: "Ich spuck' dreimal auf den Bühnenboden und klopf' auf Holz", I spit three times on the stage floor and knock on wood.

Health struggles and personal life

Krisch had faced significant health challenges in recent years. In 2012 he fell nearly two metres during a premiere in Berlin, sustaining a vertebral injury and a tear in his diaphragm. In 2023 he was forced to withdraw from both the lead role in the premiere of Peter Turrini's "Es muss geschieden sein" and his position as artistic director of the Raimundspiele Gutenstein. He addressed his health struggles in a 2024 interview with Die Presse: "Meinen gesundheitlichen Problemen musste ich mich stellen, denn mein Körper ist ja mein Instrument. Ohne ihn geht es nicht."

Before becoming an actor, Krisch trained as a carpenter and entered the profession almost by accident after working on stage set construction. He leaves behind five children, three sons from his first marriage, and a son and daughter from his second marriage to actress Larissa Fuchs, with whom he had another child in 2023.