Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Roland Emmerich Turns 70 as ARD Debuts Documentary on His Life and Health Battles

The filmmaker says staying on set kept him alive through tumors and grueling treatments.

Overview

  • ARD/Das Erste will air the documentary Roland Emmerich – Meister der Apokalypse on November 10, with streaming in the ARD Mediathek starting November 5.
  • In a new interview, Emmerich recounts a brain tumor at 45, a later kidney tumor, a recurrence in the brain, and what he says was a false leukemia diagnosis by a practitioner who was not a real doctor.
  • He credits directing The Day After Tomorrow with helping save his life, saying work kept him focused and resilient during illness.
  • Emmerich says he intends to keep working, declaring, “I want to direct until I drop.”
  • A museum retrospective titled Dreamworld – The Vision of Roland Emmerich is scheduled to open at the Neue Kunstmuseum Tübingen on February 15, 2026.