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Nuremberg
A tense historical psychological drama where an unsettling fascination curdles into moral horror as an ambitious psychiatrist gazes directly into the polished mirror of human monstrosity.
Nuremberg
Nuremberg

"Judgment is coming."

06 November 2025 United States of America 149 min 7.6 (1,342)

Director: James Vanderbilt

Cast: Rami Malek, Russell Crowe, Michael Shannon, Leo Woodall, John Slattery

Drama History The Pathology and Banality of Evil The Rule of Law vs. Victor's Justice Hubris and the Loss of Objectivity Complicity, Memory, and Moral Awakening
Budget: $11,800,000
Box Office: $37,009,109

Nuremberg — Characters & Cast

Character Analysis

Dr. Douglas Kelley

Rami Malek

Archetype: The Inquisitor / Tragic Seeker Key Trait: Analytical arrogance masking psychological vulnerability.

Motivation

To achieve scientific fame and understand the psychological blueprint of evil by evaluating the Nazi high command.

Character Arc

Evolves from a swaggering, self-assured psychiatrist into an emotionally destabilized man horrified by the realization of human darkness and his own hubris.

Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring

Russell Crowe

Archetype: The Shadow / Charismatic Antihero-Villain Key Trait: Narcissistic charm, commanding presence, and predatory intellect.

Motivation

To defend his legacy, dominate the courtroom stage, and prove the trial is mere victor's hypocrisy.

Character Arc

Transitions from an unkempt prisoner recovering from drug dependency into a magnetic, calculating mastermind in the courtroom, before staging a final act of defiant control.

Justice Robert H. Jackson

Michael Shannon

Archetype: The Righteous Lawgiver / Moral Anchor Key Trait: Uncompromising moral indignation and rhetorical gravitas.

Motivation

To establish an enduring legal precedent for world peace and human rights through institutional justice.

Character Arc

Struggles against Allied diplomatic infighting, evidentiary mountains, and Göring's formidable sparring before delivering a historic closing argument.

Sergeant Howie Triest

Leo Woodall

Archetype: The Conscience / Moral Witness Key Trait: Quiet dignity, emotional restraint, and acute perceptiveness.

Motivation

To serve justice and translate truthfully despite personal trauma as a German-Jewish refugee.

Character Arc

Moves from a quiet facilitator in the background to a crucial moral touchstone who reminds Kelley of the human cost of Nazi ideology.

Colonel Burton C. Andrus

John Slattery

Archetype: The Rigid Warder Key Trait: Stern bureaucratic discipline.

Motivation

To maintain absolute military order and ensure none of the defendants evade the gallows through suicide.

Character Arc

Constantly clashes with Kelley's scientific approach, prioritizing military containment over psychological exploration.

Cast

Rami Malek as Douglas Kelley
Russell Crowe as Hermann Göring
Michael Shannon as Justice Robert H. Jackson
Leo Woodall as Sergeant Howie Triest
John Slattery as Colonel Burton Andrus
Richard E. Grant as Sir David Maxwell-Fyfe
Mark O'Brien as Colonel John Amen
Colin Hanks as Dr. Gustave Gilbert
Wrenn Schmidt as Elsie Douglas
Andreas Pietschmann as Rudolf Hess
Lydia Peckham as Lila McQuaide
Lotte Verbeek as Emmy Göring
Dieter Riesle as Julius Streicher
Peter Jordan as Karl Dönitz
Tom Keune as Robert Ley

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