Manfred Lehmann

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Wikipedia

Manfred Lehmann
Manfred Lehmann (2006)
Born
Franz Lehmann

(1945-01-29) 29 January 1945 (age 80)
Berlin, Germany
OccupationsActor, voice actor
Years active1968–present
ChildrenDascha Lehmann
RelativesDennis Schmidt-Foß (son-in-law)
Dalia Mya Schmidt-Foß (granddaughter)

Manfred Lehmann (born 29 January 1945 in Berlin as Franz Lehmann) is a German actor and voice actor. He is best known as the German dubbing voice of Bruce Willis and Gérard Depardieu.

Life and career

Lehmann received his acting training from Edith Hildebrandt in Berlin. His first stage experience was at the Forum-Theater Berlin in 1968/69. From 1969 to 1971, he performed at the Berliner Komödie and the Schaubühne am Halleschen Ufer, from 1974 to 1977 at the Schillertheater, and in 1980 at the Grips-Theater.

Manfred Lehmann appeared in various German television productions, including multiple episodes of Tatort and Ein Fall für zwei.[1] He also appeared in international films, for example alongside Lewis Collins and Klaus Kinski in Code Name: Wild Geese (Geheimcode: Wildgänse) and Commando Leopard.[2] For the weekly ZDF consumer magazine WISO, Lehmann played the character "Detective Sommer".

Lehmann became known to a broad audience primarily through his work as a voice actor.[3] He is the standard German voice for Bruce Willis and Gérard Depardieu; additionally, he dubs Dolph Lundgren, Kurt Russell, and James Woods, among others.[4] He lent his voice to Steven Seagal once in the film The Patriot and twice to actor and comedian Bill Murray. Furthermore, he can be heard in radio and television commercials – most notably for the REWE "Award Ceremony", the hardware store chain Praktiker (with the famous slogan "20 percent off everything, except pet food"), Navigon ("Any questions?"), or Meda Kitchens – as well as in audio plays (e.g., in Jeff Wayne's musical version of The War of the Worlds) and documentaries.[5] Some of these commercials have been humorously archived on YouTube.[6]

In 2025, Lehmann successfully sued a YouTuber who used an AI-generated version of his voice.[7]

Manfred Lehmann lives in Berlin-Wilmersdorf. His daughter Dascha Lehmann, his son-in-law Dennis Schmidt-Foß, and his granddaughter Dalia Mya Schmidt-Foß are also active as voice actors.

Filmography

Actor (Selection)

Voice acting roles (Selection)

Bruce Willis

Cheech Marin

Dolph Lundgren

Gérard Depardieu

James Woods

Kurt Russell

Michael Madsen

Willem Dafoe

Dubbing in Films (Misc)

TV Series (Dubbing)

Video Games

Year Game Character
1997 Broken Helix Jake Burton
1998 The Settlers III Helios
1998 Apocalypse Trey Kincaid (Bruce Willis)
1998 Nightlong: Union City Conspiracy Joshua Reev
1999 Omikron: The Nomad Soul Krill
1999 Outcast Cutter Slade
2000 Battle Isle: The Andosia Conflict Narrator
2002 The Thing Blake
2002 Neocron Voice over of the German trailer
2002 Die Hard: Vendetta John McClane
2003 Nocturne Stranger
2003 Wanted: A Wild Western Adventure Joe Banister
2004 Sacred Gladiator
2004 The Moment of Silence Peter Wright
2005 Earth 2160 Michael R. Falkner
2008 Drakensang: The Dark Eye Ritter Traldar
2008 Mirror's Edge
2011 Duke Nukem Forever Duke Nukem
2011 Crysis 2 Colonel Barclay
2016 Dishonored 2 Corvo Attano
2021 Age of Empires IV Prelate
2021 World of Warships Johannes Meck-Leyne

Audio plays and features

  • Various voices for radio commercials
  • 1977–1978: Kimba the White Lion Episodes 2, 4, 7 (Poly), various roles
  • 1980: Winnetou (Mein Freund Winnetou) Episodes 2, 5 (Europa Jugend). Role: Yaqui
  • 2011: Michael Lissek: Saat des Sieges. Wie Gärtner (mal wieder) die Welt retten wollen (Narrator) (Radio Feature)
  • 2014: Elodie Pascal: Blowback | Der Auftrag – Director: Elisabeth Pulz (Audio play – DKultur)
  • 2014: Gruselkabinett Episodes 86, 87, 89 (Titania Medien), various roles
  • 2014: Sherlock Holmes Episodes 12, 14 (Titania Medien), various roles
  • 2014: Titania Special Episode 10: Pinocchio (Titania Medien), Role: Farmer
  • Since 2014: C. Auguste Dupin in the series Sherlock Holmes & Co. and Die geheimnisvollen Fälle von Edgar Allen Poe und Auguste Dupin
  • 2021: Voice-over for a recruitment film for the Berlin Police[8]
  • 2023: Intro speaker for the YouTube format Survival Squad[9]

References

  1. ↑ imfernsehen GmbH & Co KG. "Filmografie Manfred Lehmann" (in German). Retrieved 2025-11-20.
  2. ↑ "Manfred Lehmann | filmportal.de". Retrieved 2025-11-20.
  3. ↑ "Deutsche Synchronkartei | Sprecher | Manfred Lehmann". Retrieved 2025-11-20.
  4. ↑ "Manfred Lehmann Sprecher | Kontakt | Booking | Sprachproben". Retrieved 2025-11-20.
  5. ↑ "Manfred Lehmann – Synchronsprecher, Synchronstimme Bruce Willis, Gerard Depardieu, Werbesprecher". Retrieved 2025-11-20.
  6. ↑ "Yippi-ya-yeaaah Schweinebacke, 20 % auf Alles! – Manfred Lehmann Episode 2 von 4" (in German). Retrieved 2022-08-13.
  7. ↑ "Sieg für Synchronsprecher von Bruce Willis: Schadensersatz für geklonte KI-Stimme". beck-aktuell. Verlag C.H.Beck GmbH & Co. KG. 2025-08-28. Retrieved 2025-09-29.
  8. ↑ "110% Berlin: Das ist ein offizieller Recruitingfilm der Polizei Berlin (aber nicht, was ihr denkt)" (in German). Retrieved 2021-01-28.
  9. ↑ "Die Aussetzung 🇨🇦 SURVIVAL SQUAD | Folge 1" (in German). Retrieved 2023-11-10.