Austrian-born actor Maximilian Schell , winner of an Academy Award for his portrayal of a defense lawyer in `` Judgment at Nuremberg , '' has died , his agent , Patricia Baumbauer , said Saturday . He was 83 . Schell died at an hospital in Innsbruck , Austria , with his wife , Iva , at his side , Baumbauer told CNN . `` He was suffering from a long illness , '' Baumbauer said . `` My mother was Schell 's agent for over 50 years , and when she died four years ago , he remained with the agency . He was like a father to me and knew me my entire life . '' Read more about his career . Schell , one of the most successful German-speaking actors in English-language films , made his Hollywood debut in 1958 in the World War II film `` The Young Lions , '' according to IMDb . In his second Hollywood role , as defense attorney Hans Rolfe in Stanley Kramer 's classic `` Judgment at Nuremberg , '' he won the 1961 Academy Award for Best Actor and beat out co-star Spencer Tracy for the Oscar , according to IMDb . He also earned a Golden Globe and the New York Film Critics Circle Award for the role , which brought him international acclaim . Schell 's acting eventually won him two more Oscar nominations -- in 1976 for Best Actor for `` The Man in the Glass Booth '' and in 1978 for Best Supporting Actor for `` Julia , '' according to IMDb . As a director , Schell 's 1984 documentary on Marlene Dietrich , `` Marlene '' was nominated for a best documentary Oscar and praised as a masterpiece of the nonfiction genre , according to IMDb . Dietrich allowed herself to be recorded but refused to be filmed , bringing out the most in Schell 's talent to penetrate images and uncover reality . Schell was born in Vienna on December 8 , 1930 , and raised in Zurich , Switzerland . People we 've lost in 2014 .
Maximilian Schell won Academy Award for role in `` Judgment at Nuremberg '' He was one of the most successful German-speaking actors in English-language films . The film is based on a true story about an American soldier who served as a guard during World War II and later became a Nazi war criminal.