Merab Ninidze

Acting

Merab Ninidze

Born 1965-11-03 · Tbilisi, Georgia SSR, USSR

Merab Ninidze (born 3 November 1965) is a Georgian actor. He is best known for the roles of Oleg Penkovsky in The Courier, Walter Redlich in Nowhere in Africa, and Giulio Sabbadin in Conclave. Ninidze was born into an artistic family and was introduced to acting at a young age. He was heavily involved in the theatrical world in Georgia. At the age of 13, he successfully auditioned for the role of Prince Edward in Shakespeare's Richard III at the Rustaveli State Academic Theatre in Tbilisi, which premiered in 1979 and toured the UK three times. From 1982 to 1985, he studied at the Shota Rustaveli Theatre and Georgia State Film Institute under the guidance of Gizo Jordania, which eventually led him to become a full-fledged member of the Theatre Company. Later, he would perform in plays such as Hamlet, The Merchant of Venice, The Diary of Anne Frank, and David Kldiashvili's Step-Mother. Ninidze's first major film role was in Tengiz Abuladze's 1984 film Repentance, in which he played Tornike Aravidze. At the age of 25, Ninidze immigrated from Georgia following the Civil War in Georgia. During this time, he was offered a role in Goran Rebic's Yugofilm, which led him to work in Vienna for several months. For more than 20 years, Ninidze has worked in Georgian, Russian, German, and English-language film and TV.

Acting credits

A Working Man poster
6.7

Levon Cade left behind a decorated military career in the black ops to live a simple life working construction. But when his boss's daughter, who is like family to him, is taken by human traffickers, his search to bring her home uncovers a world of corruption far greater than he ever could have imagined.

A Working Man

2025

Conclave poster
7.2

After the unexpected death of the Pope, Cardinal Lawrence is tasked with managing the covert and ancient ritual of electing a new one. Sequestered in the Vatican with the Catholic Church’s most powerful leaders until the process is complete, Lawrence finds himself at the center of a conspiracy that could lead to its downfall.

Conclave

2024

Bridge of Spies poster
7.2

During the Cold War, the Soviet Union captures U.S. pilot Francis Gary Powers after shooting down his U-2 spy plane. Sentenced to 10 years in prison, Powers' only hope is New York lawyer James Donovan, recruited by a CIA operative to negotiate his release. Donovan boards a plane to Berlin, hoping to win the young man's freedom through a prisoner exchange. If all goes well, the Russians would get Rudolf Abel, the convicted spy who Donovan defended in court.

Bridge of Spies

2015

The Courier poster
7.0

Cold War spy Greville Wynne and his Russian source try to put an end to the Cuban Missile Crisis.

The Courier

2020

Tom Clancy's Without Remorse poster
6.9

An elite Navy SEAL uncovers an international conspiracy while seeking justice for the murder of his pregnant wife.

Tom Clancy's Without Remorse

2021

No artwork available
NR

Set against the backdrop of the Potsdam Conference in July 1945, in the aftermath of Nazi Germany’s defeat, President Harry S. Truman, Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin converge on the meeting which will shape the future of Europe and the world. Each man has a personal and political agenda. Newly appointed Truman needs to end the War with Japan. Churchill is facing a pivotal election back home. Stalin has territorial ambitions over occupied territories. As political tensions rise and personal crises unfold, a high-stakes diplomatic chess game emerges. The three leaders’ decisions and balance of power will impact millions and shape global politics for decades to come.

The Price of Peace

Nowhere in Africa poster
7.0

A Jewish woman named Jettel Redlich flees Nazi Germany with her daughter Regina, to join her husband, Walter, on a farm in Kenya. At first, Jettel refuses to adjust to her new circumstances, bringing with her a set of china dishes and an evening gown. While Regina adapts readily to this new world, forming a strong bond with her father's cook, an African named Owuor.

Nowhere in Africa

2001

Jupiter's Moon poster
5.5

A young refugee, Aryan, is shot while illegally trying to cross the Hungarian border. While tending him back to health, a doctor at a refugee camp discovers that Aryan has gained an extraordinary talent—he can levitate. Aryan is smuggled out by the doctor, who is intent on exploiting his secret.

Jupiter's Moon

2017

April poster
6.8

Nina, an OB-GYN, faces accusations after a newborn's death. Her life undergoes scrutiny during investigation. She persists in her medical duties, determined to provide care others hesitate to offer, despite the risks.

April

2025

My Happy Family poster
7.4

In a patriarchal society, an ordinary Georgian family lives with three generations under one roof. All are shocked when 52-year-old Manana decides to move out from her parents’ home and live alone. Without her family and her husband, a journey into the unknown begins.

My Happy Family

2017

No artwork available
NR

A young man is walking back home when a construction worker addresses him. He needs his help to take the measurements of the floor. Cooperatively, the young man follows him to the construction site.

Frühlings Erwachen

2012

The Fourth State poster
6.0

A journalist gets caught up in a terrorist plot in Moscow while investigating the Russian secret service.

The Fourth State

2012

Percht poster
NR

It's Christmas season in a small town somewhere in the Austrian countryside. Following tradition, the young local men parade in daemon-like masks to chase away the winter...

Percht

2018

Bride of the Wind poster
4.2

A biopic of Alma Mahler, the wife of composer Gustav Mahler (as well as Walter Gropius and Franz Werfel), and the mistress of Oskar Kokoschka.

Bride of the Wind

2001

I Watch Her Sleep poster
NR

Based on Philippe Garbit's short story “Je la regarde dormir,” a woman is accused of a cruel crime by a man who claims to be her friend. After many sleepless hours, the boundaries between madness and reality begin to blur, and at her last supper the man becomes the judge of life and death.

I Watch Her Sleep

2017

Repentance poster
7.1

The day after his funeral, the corpse of Varlam Aravidze, the mayor of a small Georgian town, turns up in his son's garden. Although it is secretly reburied, the corpse keeps returning until the police capture the local woman who is responsible. This woman says that Varlam should never be laid to rest since his Stalin-like reign of terror led to the disappearance of her family and friends.

Repentance

1987

Georgisches Liebeslied poster
8.0

A young German music agent searches for talented young musicians in Georgia, where she begins an affair with her translator in Tbilisi. Back in Germany, the career-oriented woman resumes her usual life, but suddenly her lover shows up in Munich and turns her life plans upside down.

Georgisches Liebeslied

2005

Hostages poster
6.1

Soviet Georgia, 1983. Preparations for Nika and Ana's wedding are in full swing and it's a big day for both of their elite families. For the newlyweds and their friends, however, the celebrations are in fact part of a cover-up, as they plot an audacious escape from the Soviet Union.

Hostages

2017

In the Name of Blood poster
5.9

In the working-class neighborhoods of Nice, a pillar of the local Georgian community is murdered. His son Tristan, who aspires to become an orthodox priest, finds himself finds himself alone with his grieving mother. Gabriel, his older brother with a troubled past, reappears from a long exile to make amends by redeeming his family honor.

In the Name of Blood

2025

No artwork available
10.0

Live writing is the plot and artistic principle of cinematic improvisation by Nana Djordjadze and Irakli Kvirikadze.

Postalioni

2003

Lou Andreas-Salomé, The Audacity to be Free poster
6.5

Lou Andreas-Salomé, the woman who enraptured 19th century Europe’s greatest minds, recounts her life to Ernst Pfeiffer in this German film directed by Cordula Kablitz-Post. A published novelist, poet and essayist, Salomé’s desire to live a life free from convention scandalized society but spurred genius and passion in others, including Friedrich Nietzsche, Paul Rée and her lover, the poet Rainer Maria Rilke. Under the tutelage of Sigmund Freud, she became the first female psychoanalyst.

Lou Andreas-Salomé, The Audacity to be Free

2016

Paper Soldier poster
5.6

In 1961, a Soviet medical officer is conflicted about his position overseeing the health of future cosmonauts.

Paper Soldier

2008

Schön, dass es Dich gibt poster
5.5

Jackies' quiet life as a housewife and English teacher ends abruptly when her husband informs her that he is leaving her for a younger woman. In a quest for revenge, Jackie makes arrangements with a plastic surgeon for a general overhaul with the goal of landing a younger husband. A newspaper leads her to Peter who is as bored by his insurance job as he is by the young women he has been dating. Written by John W. Wrist

Schön, dass es Dich gibt

2005

In Heaven poster
9.0

I Heaven's plot revolves around three friends with personal ambitions who must face the less pleasant aspects of reality. The story is told from the point of view of 17-year-old Csiwi, a loner who spends his evenings driving around in his brother's car or simply hanging out. He has no idea about the direction his future should take. He runs into Levi and Valeska and they easily become his bosom friends despite their differences. Levi, whose circumstances have constantly been changing, is looking for something stable in his life. He works very hard so that he can afford his own flat. Valeska is restless and fascinated by distant places and change. For her, postcards symbolize places where happiness is hidden. Valeska and Levi represent two different ways of living and Csiwi must decide for himself which road to take. He feels the first pangs of love towards Valeska, and Levi easily becomes a good friend. Together they set off in a new direction, which could be their heaven on earth.

In Heaven

1999