Actor Julian Sands‘ unexplained disappearance in January and untimely death shocked the world and saddened his many fans. In a more than four decades-long career, Julian Sands created a colorful tapestry of art. Sands, born on January 4, 1958, had an undeniably compelling screen presence, and his refined performances and endearing charisma helped bring his characters to life. His breakthrough performance was as the romantic lead, George Emerson, in the 1985 film A Room with a View. This marked a turning point in his life, propelling him to the bright lights of Hollywood.
Julian Sands filled every role he played with depth and emotion, whether it was a romantic lead, a tortured artist, or a ruthless villain. Among his many famous roles is that of the titular character in the horror films Warlock and Warlock: The Armageddon. Sands did not limit himself to film; he also made an indelible impression on television. He voiced Valmont for the first two seasons of Jackie Chan Adventures, appeared as the Doci of the Ori in two Stargate SG-1 episodes, and played Austrian diplomat Klemens von Metternich in the Napoleon miniseries.
However, on January 13, 2023, tragedy struck when Julian Sands disappeared while hiking in the San Gabriel Mountains northeast of Los Angeles. On June 24, his body was found where he had been exploring. The legacy of Julian Sands shows how the work of a single artist can live on in the hearts and minds of people around the world forever. In his memory, we present a selection of Sands’ finest performances from the big and small screens in no particular order.
A Room with a View (1985)
Key to the plot of the 1985 film adaptation of E.M. Forster’s 1908 novel, A Room with a View, is the performance of Julian Sands as George Emerson. George Emerson is a free-thinking, passionate young man whose unconventional ideas and lack of concern for the strict societal norms of the time set him apart from the other characters. In contrast to Edwardian society’s restrained and rigid societal norms, he is shown to be more in touch with his feelings and desires than the other men.
Sands performs stunningly, especially when George kisses Lucy Honeychurch (Helena Bonham Carter) in a poppy field in the Florentine countryside. This moment perfectly captures George’s desire to express his true feelings, despite the social stigma attached. A Room with a View was well-received by critics and audiences alike. It received eight nominations at the 59th Academy Awards (including Best Picture) and won three: Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Art Direction, and Best Costume Design. Five awards from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts and a Golden Globe were among its many honors.
Warlock (1989)
Diving into the horror genre, Sands starred as a 17th-century warlock who avoids execution by using evil magic to transport himself into the 20th century. Pursued by witch hunter Giles Redferne (Richard E. Grant), the Warlock sets off on a journey to gather the Grand Grimoire, a powerful Satanic book that can unmake the world when assembled.
The Warlock’s callousness toward human life and his destructive desire for power provide much tension and suspense throughout the film. Sands’ portrayal of the Warlock is both terrifying and endearing. He imbues the character with uncanny grace and a sense of humor, bringing a captivating presence to the role of the sadistic antagonist. His performance became a fan favorite, showcasing his ability to embrace diverse roles.
Leaving Las Vegas (1995)
Julian Sands plays Yuri Butso, a supporting character, in the 1995 film Leaving Las Vegas, which received positive reviews from critics. This Mike Figgis-helmed drama is a grim look at alcoholism and hopelessness, and its lead actor, Nicolas Cage, won an Oscar for his performance. Adapted from John O’Brien’s semi-autobiographical 1990 novel of the same name, the film follows Cage as a Los Angeles alcoholic who, after experiencing the loss of his family and his job, decides to move to Las Vegas and drink himself to death.
When he arrives, he meets and falls in love with Elisabeth Shue’s character, a sex worker. Julian Sands’ character, Yuri Butso, is a Latvian immigrant working as a pimp in Las Vegas. While not the main character, Sands’ portrayal effectively conveys Yuri’s sleazy, unpleasant personality, producing an appalling and captivating character. Yuri Butso is a member of Las Vegas’s seedy underbelly, a realm far distant from the city’s gloss and glamour.
The Killing Fields (1984)
The Killing Fields is a critically acclaimed 1984 British biographical drama directed by Roland Joffé. The film is based on the true stories of two journalists — the Cambodian Dith Pran and the American Sydney Schanberg — who worked in Cambodia during the Khmer Rouge dictatorship. Julian Sands plays the role of the British writer and Sunday Times correspondent Jon Swain during the Cambodian Civil War.
Sands captures the complexities of a journalist reporting from a country at war. Initially, Swain comes off as an idealistic young man who is unaware of the reality of the situation. By the movie’s end, Swain has no choice but to face the brutal truth about the situation in Cambodia. Both audiences and critics responded positively to the film, which led to its commercial success. It was nominated for seven Oscars at the 57th ceremony and took home three. In addition, it took home eight BAFTAs.
Impromptu (1991)
The British-American historical drama film Impromptu, produced in 1991, provides a beautiful, dramatized look at the lives of various 19th-century artists and authors. In the movie, Julian Sands portrays the extravagant and accomplished Hungarian composer and piano prodigy Franz Liszt, who played a pivotal role in the development of classical music during the Romantic era.
Sands skillfully portrays Liszt’s larger-than-life personality and ability to enchant audiences with his concerts. Impromptu focuses a lot on the artistic and romantic connections between its characters. Bernadette Peters plays Liszt’s lover Marie d’Agoult, and their stormy relationship lends another element of interest to the film. Impromptu also stars Hugh Grant as Frédéric Chopin and Judy Davis as George Sand.
Gotham (2014 – 2019)
In the hit American TV show Gotham, Julian Sands portrays Dr. Gerald Crane as the parent of one of Batman’s most infamous adversaries, The Scarecrow. Gotham takes an entirely different approach to exploring the Batman story than other media by showing how some of the city’s most notorious bad guys got their start. The show’s first season introduces Sands’ character, Gerald Crane, a former biology teacher turned criminal. Crane has an unhealthy preoccupation with the psychological effects of fear.
Sands does a fantastic job of depicting Crane’s spiral into lunacy, showing us a man consumed by a desire to rid himself of fear after the death of his wife. As part of his research into terror, he develops a serum and uses it to subject unwilling test subjects to terrible hallucinations. When his fixation with overcoming fear leads him to test the serum on his son, Jonathan Crane, Dr. Crane’s plot takes a terrible turn. This experiment transforms Jonathan into the villainous Scarecrow, providing a compelling history for one of Batman’s most persistent opponents.
Gothic (1986)
The horror film Gothic, directed by Ken Russell and released in 1986, is a fictional account of the notorious “Shelley summer,” when prominent writers and artists from the Romantic era got together at the Villa Diodati in Switzerland, near Lake Geneva. During this get-together, Mary Shelley conceived the idea for her seminal novel, Frankenstein, and Julian Sands portrays Percy Bysshe Shelley, the famed Romantic poet, and her husband.
The hedonistic gathering at the Villa is the film’s focal point, which is well-known for its strange and horrific themes. Some of the most intriguing dynamics come from the interactions between Shelley and his wife Mary (played by Natasha Richardson) and Gabriel Byrne’s Lord Byron.
Warlock: The Armageddon (1993)
Warlock: The Armageddon is the 1993 sequel to the original 1989 horror-fantasy film Warlock. Directed by Anthony Hickox and produced by Peter Abrams, the film sees Sands reprise the part he portrayed in the original movie and brings the same chilling charisma and murderous will to it that he displayed then.
This time, Warlock is hunting for a powerful Satanic artifact; convinced that the combination of six magical runestones will unleash the devil onto the world. Once again, Julian Sands is terrific in this sinister and otherworldly part. With his imposing screen presence, he personifies the Warlock’s fearsome power and manipulative nature. This sequel spices things up by having the Warlock battle two teenage warriors with magical abilities.
24 (2006)
For the fifth season of the hit TV show 24, Julian Sands plays Vladimir Bierko, the main adversary. Wealthy and powerful Russian separatist Vladimir Bierko becomes embroiled in a scheme to release lethal nerve gas in Los Angeles. Bierko is an extremely dangerous foe because he doesn’t rely solely on physical power to carry out his plans; he also uses his intelligence and wealth to do it.
Bierko plots and executes a variety of terrorist acts during the season, and Sands offers a convincing performance as the cold, collected mastermind behind them all. The season builds to a climactic showdown between Bierko and Bauer, who have been growing more hostile toward one another. Critical acclaim for the season was highly positive, and many consider it the finest of the show’s run. It was nominated for 12 Primetime Emmys and won 5, including Outstanding Drama Series.
The Medici: Masters of Florence (2016 – 2019)
In The Medici: Masters of Florence, Julian Sands plays Piero di Cosimo de’ Medici, the father of Lorenzo the Magnificent and a prominent figure in the Medici dynasty, who dominated Florence throughout the Renaissance. Piero is at the helm of the Medici Bank and the Florentine government, making him an influential man who must continually negotiate complex political alliances and rivalries.
The show also goes into Piero’s dynamic with his son Lorenzo, highlighting the struggle between the two men’s divergent views on exercising authority. Sands does an excellent job of depicting Piero’s internal conflict between his affection for his son and his worries about the Medici legacy.
