People

Josef Sommer

Acting · follow into films and chains

Biography

Maximilian Josef Sommer (born June 26, 1934) is a German-American retired stage, television, and film actor. His best known roles are as The President in X-Men: The Last Stand, Senator Jessup in The Sum of All Fears, Peter Lassiter in The Family Man, Curtis Flemming in Shaft, Dr. Eaton in Patch Adams, Phelps Bowen in The Chamber, Clive Peoples Jr. in Nobody's Fool, Mr. Duckworth in The Mighty Ducks, Chief Paul Schaefer in Witness, Max Richter in Silkwood, Sam Taylor in Independence Day, Rothko in Dirty Harry, and narrator for the film Sophie's Choice.

Notable films

Where to start

Highlights from credits and KinoChain journeys.

The Stepford Wives

Appears in a KinoChain journey

Patch Adams

As Dr. Eaton

The Sum of All Fears

As Senator Jessup

Dirty Harry

As Rothko

Strange Days

As Palmer Strickland

The Family Man

As Peter Lassiter

Witness

As Schaeffer

Shaft

As Curt Flemming

Chains

KinoChain journeys

Public chains that pass through their films — or name them as a bridge.

Browse all chains

The Hypnotic Gaze

From Woody Allen's comic hypnosis to the chilling mechanics of control, this chain traces cinema's fascination with the mind's susceptibility.

8 films

Topics

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Horror Noir Crime

Related people

Acted

The Sum of All Fears

2002 · Senator Jessup

The Family Man

2000 · Peter Lassiter

Shaft

2000 · Curt Flemming

Patch Adams

1998 · Dr. Eaton

Strange Days

1995 · Palmer Strickland

Shadows and Fog

1991 · Priest

William Shakespeare's Hamlet

1990 · Polonius

Witness

1985 · Schaeffer

Still of the Night

1982 · George Bynum

Valley Forge

1975 · Brig. Gen. Varnum