“The Anders Family” star Tobias van Dieken
Surprising reaction to naked appearance in “Tatort”
Tobias van Dieken (Alexej) plays Paula Anders’ (Bettina Burchard) lover in the TV series “Anders Family”.
© ZDF / Steffen Junghans
In the Münster “Tatort” actor Tobias van Dieken caused a stir with his naked appearance. In the interview he talks about the feedback.
With his appearance in the latest Münster crime thriller “Crime Scene: Among Gardeners” (March 17), actor Tobias van Dieken (born 1980) provided a particularly entertaining scene. Completely naked, he emerged from the pool in his opaquely fenced allotment to grill sausages. He explained the neighborhood to the inspectors : “They think I’m doing something to their valuable brood if I show my little ones the sun and the sun my little ones.”
On Sunday (April 7th, 8:15 p.m., ZDF) he can be seen in the first of two new episodes of the successful TV series “The Anders Family”. In it he plays Alexej Kasabian, the new boyfriend of Paula Anders (Bettina Burchard, 37), who in turn is the mother and wife in the eponymous patchwork family. In an interview with spot on news, he reveals what the feedback was like after the “Tatort” and the “Anders Family” films. The Bonn native also explains what he thinks of couples therapy and how patchwork can work.
How pleased were you that the first two “Anders Family” films were so well received and that the series is being continued?
Tobias van Dieken: It’s a good feeling when your work is accepted. Many friends and acquaintances immediately asked me when and what would happen next. Not everyone realized that the landscape in and around Leipzig is so beautiful.
How was the feedback after the recent Münster “crime scene” in comparison?
van Dieken: It’s crazy. I just liked the quirkiness of the character. I wouldn’t have expected that appearing as a nudist would cause such waves. But I found it a bit funny. In any case, I received quite a few appreciative messages afterwards, most of them adult-friendly.
Back to “Anders Family”. What do you particularly like about your role Alexej Kasabian?
van Dieken: Alexej is a tinkerer, an inventor. I find it fascinating when people engage with things so intensively that they create something new out of them.
Do you share his passion for bicycles?
van Dieken: Absolutely. I just rode my first bike race. The Strade Bianche in Tuscany, a classic. Of course with the amateurs, but still, it was an incredible experience and I was pretty proud.
The “Anders Family” films are about couples therapy or mediation, among other things. What do you think of it?
van Dieken: We live in a highly complex society. And of course everything that surrounds us also influences the most intimate individual areas. A look at your own relationship from the outside can be very helpful. Not rocket science, but a way to find orientation. Would even be something for Paula and Alexej. But then maybe not with Fabian [Anders, Paartherapeut, gespielt von Moritz von Treuenfels, 35] …
What do you learn from the films for your own life?
van Dieken: In the best case scenario, with our stories we manage to reflect everyday life that many people in our country know. I think we try to show solutions in a creative and loving way. The most important thing – and this is what I take with me above all else – is to talk to each other, to listen to each other, to meet each other openly.
Each episode is about an external relationship or marriage in crisis, played by a real couple of actors. What do you think about this idea?
van Dieken: We were able to get great colleagues on board with this idea, and for that reason alone it has paid off. I can imagine that our viewers will find this quite interesting and may wonder what is ‘real’ and what is ‘acted’.
Alexej believes in possible patchwork happiness with Paula’s family. Do you know a model that works in reality? What are good conditions for this?
van Dieken: I think the most important prerequisite is a willingness to compromise on the part of everyone involved. Always being open and fair with each other and sometimes standing back requires a lot of work and time. But yes, I know positive examples and think that you can grow from such challenges.