Roland Emmerich - Director had a brain tumor
Roland Emmerich (68), the king of disaster films, experienced his own personal disaster over 20 years ago: He had a brain tumor. He first spoke publicly about it in an interview with the magazine "Bunte".
He underwent surgery twice, which is why there is a long scar on his head. It was a "moderate-grade tumor", but if he had returned, it would have likely been a high-grade tumor, and that would have been his death sentence. In the end, everything turned out well: "I had genuine luck", Emmerich revealed.
The illness did not shake up his world, but rather motivated him: "I had to look death in the eye. I'm not the type who puts his hands over his head and says: 'Oh, I have to die'. That rather spurred me on. I then made my film about climate change, 'The Day After Tomorrow', because I still wanted to do something good for the world. It should be written on my tombstone. It came to the cinema in 2004 and was a huge success."
Roland Emmerich takes more time for his private life
These days, he takes things more easily: "Whatever happens, it just happens." He also takes more time for his private life, friendships, love, and his husband. "All these things are important in life", Emmerich emphasized. Roland Emmerich has been happily married to his 33-year-older husband Omar de Soto since 2017.
Despite all the romantic happiness, producing a love film is not an option for Roland Emmerich: "I can't understand those films. They're cheesy and no longer make any sense in our world." Instead, the director wants to continue telling "big stories". He is currently working on a project about climate refugees, and his new gladiator series "Those About to Die" will be released on Amazon Prime Video in July.
Roland Emmerich is one of the most successful German exports to Hollywood. The native of Stuttgart first drew attention to himself in 1994 with the film "Stargate", before reaching the preliminary peak of his career in 1996 with "Independence Day". Following were films like "Godzilla" (1998) and "The Patriot" (2000), and in 2004, he made the catastrophe film "The Day After Tomorrow". In 2009, he created another successful disaster film with "2012". He was last represented in the cinema in 2022 with "Moonfall".
- Despite his past encounter with a moderate-grade brain tumor, which was essentially a death sentence if left untreated, Roland Emmerich revealed that he felt lucky to have survived.
- After facing death as a result of his brain tumor, Emmerich was inspired to create a film about climate change, titled 'The Day After Tomorrow', hoping to leave a positive legacy.
- Although Roland Emmerich is currently happily married to his 33-year-older husband Omar de Soto and values his private life, he has no interest in producing a love film, finding it cheesy and out of touch with the modern world.
- In the Hollywood sphere, Roland Emmerich is renowned as a German export, achieving success with films like 'Stargate' in 1994, 'Independence Day' in 1996, and 'The Day After Tomorrow' in 2004, among others.
