New Hungarian rising star? Máté Haumann on the way to world fame

Máté Haumann is a brilliant Hungarian performer, actor who comes from a family of artists. His father Péter – who passed away in 2022 – and his sister Petra are also well-known actors in Hungary. Máté graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London in 2002. He is starring in two Netflix series: The Last Kingdom season 4 and The Witcher. In July this year, he debuted in Christopher Nolan’s new hit film Oppenheimer, playing the role of Hungarian-born physicist Leó Szilárd.

Máté Haumann was born on 30 September, 1980. His paternal grandfather was a hairdresser and amateur actor. His father, Péter Haumann,was one of the greatest Hungarian actors and was even elected “Actor of the Nation”. Thus, you can say that he had acting in his genes.

He made his screen debut at the age of seven in Gaudiopolis, followed by Doven ajtaja (The Door of Doven), Nyomkereső (The Tracker) and A brooklyni testvér (The Brother from Brooklyn). Even though he starred in a number of major Hungarian productions at such a young age, it was not until he was fourteen that he decided to become an actor: “I was on a language course in Brighton in England at the time, and Mission Impossible was playing in the cinemas, which for some reason had a huge impact on my young teenage self. Afterwards, I would sit on the beach for hours watching the sunset, and I thought to myself, ‘This is what I want to do.’ And the best springboard for that is a university abroad,” he recalled in an earlier interview.

He attended the Guildhall School in London (other world-famous actors such as Ewan McGregor and Orlando Bloom also graduated from there). When he decided to continue his studies in England, he had already passed the third entrance exam to the Academy of Dramatic Arts in Budapest. As he later confessed, he wanted to avoid the accusation that he was only being admitted because of his father, atv.hu wrote.

Theatre, movie and other performances

In 2002, when he finished his studies, he subsequently earned a role in The Archers, a radio play on BBC Radio 4 since 1952. The radio play – where he played a Hungarian exchange student for eight months – was listed in the Guinness Book of Records. The Szabó család (Szabó family, similar Hungarian radio show) eventually “outgrew” from this show. In the Guildhall, Máté learned to speak English without an accent. However, for this role, it was a disadvantage: “Complaining phone calls have become a regular feature. There was one time when a member of the secret service, once living in Hungary, called and insisted that he knew what a real Hungarian accent was, and that I – and the BBC – was not fooling him. They offered to show him my passport,” Haumann recalled a funny story about his first role. A year later, he decided to move back to his home country, and he has appeared in numerous Hungarian and foreign films and series which were shot in Hungary. He played small roles in films such as A miskolci boniésklájd (Who the Hell’s Bonnie and Clyde?) and then in the comedy called Apám beájulna (Father would faint). He also appeared in Lajos Koltai’s Sorstalanság (Fatelessness).

His theatre career also began in his childhood, acting at the Madách Theatre, the Rock Theatre and the Operett Theatre. After graduation, he continued his work as a freelancer. He performed at all the major Hungarian acting institutions such as the Radnóti, the Örkény, the Thália and the National Theatre.

When asked what it takes for a Hungarian to become a world star and get an invitation to Hollywood, Máté answered as follows:

“First of all, 98% luck, then 1% talent and manager and 1% willingness. But without the 1% talent, there is no success. I believe in always being ready for opportunities, it’s a constant state of readiness, I can never let go.”

Copy editor: István Vass

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