First a sensation and later a scandal: in 1983, STERN published Hitler’s secret diaries. The German public was fascinated: Did Hitler suffer from a lack of sleep and appetite? And did the Führer think Chow-Chow was deceitful? A few days later, experts exposed the supposed diaries with their intimate insights into the emotional and mental world of a tyrant as forgeries. The new RTL+ drama series FAKING HITLER, produced by UFA Fiction, is the fictionalized film version of the events surrounding the publication of the Hitler diaries. At the same time, it provides a profound look at sensationalism, fake news and the seductiveness of people. The series also shows how Germany in the 1980s was still under the spell of its National Socialist past.
Streamed on RTL+ since November 30
The six-part series stars Lars Eidinger (25 km/h, NAHSCHUSS) as STERN reporter Gerd Heidemann and Moritz Bleibtreu (CORTEX, DER BAADER MEINHOF KOMPLEX) as art forger Konrad Kujau. Sinje Irslinger plays STERN young editor Elisabeth Stöckel. The other top-class cast includes Hans-Jochen Wagner (TATORT) as STERN journalist, Daniel Donskoy (THE CROWN, SANKT MAIK) as investigative journalist Leo Gold, Ulrich Tukur (TATORT, GRZIMEK) as university professor Hans Stöckel, Jeanette Hain as Edda Göring as well as Tristan Seith, Richard Sammel, Ronald Kukulies, Lukas T. Sperber, Britta Hammelstein and Hanna Plaß in other roles.
Detailed content on the series can be found here in the RTL Germany Media Hub.
FAKING HITLER is a UFA Fiction production for RTL+ under the umbrella of the Bertelsmann Content Alliance. The title is inspired by the award-winning podcast “Faking Hitler – the true story of the Hitler diaries” by STERN, which journalistically examines the case using original tape recordings. Producers are Tommy Wosch (showrunner) and Markus Brunnemann, producers are Viola-Franziska Bloess and Luisa Laute. The film is directed by Wolfgang Groos and Tobi Baumann from scripts by Tommy Wosch, Annika Cizek and Dominik Moser. The camera was shot by Ahmet Tan and Philipp Kirsamer. Brigitte Kohnert and Manuel Schlegel are the editors under the direction of Hauke Bartel, Head of Fiction RTL Germany. The production was supported by the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW, the German Motion Picture Fund and the Verwertungsgesellschaft Rundfunk. On Saturday, October 23, 2021, the RTL+ Original will celebrate its world premiere at the Cologne Filmpalast as part of the Film Festival Cologne.