Early years Kier was born in
Cologne on 14 October 1944. The hospital where he was born was
destroyed by the Allies, in which Kier and his mother survived during
World War II. Kier grew up without a father. In his youth, he was an
altar boy and chorister, and began working as a fashion model as a teenager. He cited
Caterina Valente as an influence. At 19, Kier moved to London to study acting and English, and supported himself by working as a waiter. He also took spells in
Cannes, where he befriended
Jean Marais and
Arndt von Bohlen und Halbach; Rome, where he modelled; He made his feature film debut in
Schamlos ("Shameless"), a 1968 low-budget West German/Austrian crime film. This was followed by a lead role in the West German-Austrian horror film
Mark of the Devil (1970), which proved controversial for its graphic violence, but was a commercial success that increased Kier's mainstream recognition. Another early starring role as the
title character in
Paul Morrissey's
Flesh for Frankenstein (1973), and
Dario Argento (in whose classic
Suspiria (1977) he was featured Curly in
Barb Wire, a
NASA flight psychologist in
Armageddon, the villainous Lorenzini in
The Adventures of Pinocchio and its 1999 sequel
The New Adventures of Pinocchio, and Ralfi in the film
Johnny Mnemonic. In 1992, Kier appeared in photos in
Madonna's controversial book
Sex. He also appeared in the music videos for Madonna's songs "
Erotica" and "
Deeper and Deeper", both taken from Madonna's 1992 album
Erotica. Kier also appeared in the music videos for
Korn's "
Make Me Bad", and for
Eve's and
Gwen Stefani's "
Let Me Blow Ya Mind". '' at the
2018 Berlinale Kier also worked extensively as a voice actor, starring as the psychic Yuri (as well as the voice of the PsiCorps) in
Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 and its expansion, ''
Yuri's Revenge. He also voiced the Music Master in Justice League, Herbert Ziegler in The Batman, Ivan Bahn in Metropia, Professor Pericles in Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated, Mister Toad in Beware the Batman and Dr. Peter Straub in Call of Duty: WWII., Major Lazer and Golan the Insatiable. He appeared in the trailer for the video game OD'', revealed at
The Game Awards. According to
Hideo Kojima on Twitter, Kier had not completed recording voice and
motion capture footage for the game before his death. Kier posthumously appeared in the fourth season of the
AMC series
Dark Winds.
Personal life Kier was
gay, and open about his sexuality his entire life. In 2021, he said, "No one ever asked. Maybe it was obvious, but it didn't make any difference because all that mattered was the role I was playing. As long as I did a good job on the part, no one cared about my sexuality." He otherwise maintained privacy about his personal life, although stated in a 2022 interview that he had been in a long-term relationship for over 20 years. At the time of his death, he was in a relationship with artist Delbert McBride. From 1991 until his death, Kier resided in
Palm Springs, California. Kier was invited into the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 2020.
Death Kier died at
Eisenhower Medical Center in
Rancho Mirage, California, on 23 November 2025, at the age of 81. His partner, artist Delbert McBride, verified the news. He was buried at
Hollywood Forever Cemetery, and his service was attended by colleagues including
Hideo Kojima and
Todd Stephens. ==Legacy==