Interview with Matthew Beard who plays Max Liebermann in Vienna Blood

Where do we find Max at the start of the series?

At the beginning of series four, Max returns from a successful lecture tour in New York where he has been spreading Freudianism very successfully. And he’s got a promotion. He is the Director of the Neurology department. There’s a lot going on in his life and I think he’s enjoying all of that. But I also think he’s particularly happy when Oskar shows up with a new case for him.

What are the best aspects of working on Vienna Blood?

Working on Vienna Blood is a lot of fun. You’re working in this beautiful city with these incredible actors and great directors. For me a returning season has been a joy because you get to come back and see these people again, which is a real treat.

As soon as I put the costume on and see the call sheet, we’re in a new location and another amazing place with incredible history. I take hundreds of pictures on my phone of everywhere we go because it’s such a stunning office. That’s certainly been a highlight for me.

Your character Max goes to a casino in this series, would you say Max is big risk taker?

I think Max is a big risk taker but I don’t think he’d see it that way. I think he has tunnel vision. When it comes to his work, he believes very passionately in one way of doing things and it being the right way. I don’t think he’d even consider it a risk because I don’t think he’d see any alternative. But I think as an actor and as a viewer, you can see Max taking big risks.

Who is better prepared to take bigger risks, Matthew Beard or Max Liebermann?

Well, I’ve taken some big risks in my life but I’ve never found myself hanging by one hand from the Riesenrad so I think the bigger risk taker is Max, for sure!

What is it about Max and Clara’s will they/won’t they relationship that audiences enjoy?

I think it’s great for an audience because you want an answer – as do the characters. But also, I think it reflects real life and relationships: taking twists and turns and nothing ever being simple. Their relationship also reflects the attitude of the show which is interested in complexity and psychology and depth of feelings.

Do you have a favourite Max & Oskar moment?

I do have a favourite but it’s a very, very small moment. It’s where Max is leaving to go and do some detective work. Oskar’s going to leave him on his own and says, ‘Try not to get stabbed’. Max says, ‘That’s good advice, thank you’ and he just carries on regardless! By that point in our relationship, we had reached a place where we could have this back and forth and very dry humour whilst keeping the stories moving forward. I really enjoyed that scene because it felt like we really found the show in that moment.

What have you learnt as an actor through working on this series?

I’ve matured with the character I think and learned a lot. Making television is difficult. Apart from all these joys, locations and wonderful people we also move very quickly, and I’ve learned how to adapt and relax actually which I think most actors will say is the best thing for their work and hardest to do. How to have fun with the work really is what I’ve learnt.

The fourth series of gripping crime drama Vienna Blood (2 x 90’) – written by acclaimed screenwriter Steve Thompson (Sherlock, Prime Target, Deep State,) and based on the bestselling Liebermann novels by Frank Tallis – will air on BBC iPlayer and BBC Two.

Filmed in English and on location in Vienna, series four is directed by Umut Dağ (House of Promises, Breaking Point) with Matthew Beard (The Imitation Game, Dracula, Magpie Murders) and Juergen Maurer (Vorstadtweiber, Tatort) reprising their roles as crime-fighting duo Doctor Max Liebermann and Detective Inspector Oskar Rheinhardt.

The fourth series, unlike the previous three series, features a single story – entitled Mephisto Waltz – told over two mysterious and thrilling episodes.

It’s Vienna, 1909 and the double murder of an arms dealer in police custody and a senior public official has shaken Vienna to its core. Doctor Max Liebermann has only just returned from a lecture tour when Inspector Rheinhardt asks for help in what could be the most dangerous case of their career. Oskar and Max discover a conspiracy that leads to the heart of government. Can the Freudian psychoanalyst and detective do enough to stop a seditious mole known as ‘Mephisto’ from bringing the Austro-Hungarian Empire to destruction? And will their lives ever be the same again?

Sue Deeks, BBC Head of Programme Acquisition, says: “This is such an exciting event – a Vienna Blood case so big it needs to be told over two thrilling episodes. What a treat we have in store!”

Carlo Dusi, Managing Director of Endor Productions, says: “We could not be more proud of this special new season that we have produced with our friends at MR and brings a thrilling new storyline with the highest of stakes to fans of Vienna Blood. There truly could be no better showcase for the combined talents of our wonderful writer Steve Thompson, brilliant director Umut Dag and incredibly talented cast and crew, led as ever by the unique pairing of Matthew Beard and Juergen Maurer. It has been an honour and a pleasure to work again with our partners at ORF, ZDF, BBC, PBS and Red Arrow Studios International in bringing the luminous characters and world originally created in Frank Tallis’s Liebermann Diaries to the screen, and we are sure that audiences will not be disappointed.”

Oliver Auspitz and Andreas Kamm of MR Film add: “We can’t wait to bring this very special season of Vienna Blood to a worldwide audience. Having one case spanning two episodes will push Max and Oskar to limits never seen before. Thanks to our trusted partners Endor Productions, Red Arrow Studios International, ORF and ZDF. With the support of Austria’s rebate system FISAplus, Television Fund Austria and TV-Filmfund Vienna and all the creatives involved we’re delighted to continue this (hi)story!”

Rodrigo Herrera Ibarguengoytia, VP Scripted Acquisitions & Co-Productions, Red Arrow Studios International, comments: “We are thrilled to return to early 1900s Vienna for Max Liebermann and Oskar Rheinhardt’s most ambitious and consequential case yet. Vienna Blood has been a hit around the world, from the UK to the US and from Austria to Australia and we cannot wait to bring this compelling new season to global broadcasters and their audiences.”

The producers of Vienna Blood are Jez Swimer for Endor; Oliver Auspitz, Andreas Kamm and Catrin Strasser for MR Film; commissioning editors are Klaus Lintschinger and Kerstin Bertsch for ORF and Wolfgang Feindt for ZDF; executive producers are Steve Thompson; Carlo Dusi for Endor; Rodrigo Herrera Ibarguengoytia for Red Arrow Studios International and Hilary Bevan Jones.

Other funding partners include FISAplus, Film in Austria (ABA), Televisionfund Austria, TV-Filmfund Vienna and Land Niederösterreich.

Red Arrow Studios International will distribute the series globally.

Season 4 of VIENNA BLOOD arrives Sunday, August 4, on BBC iPlayer & BBC Two at 9pm. The series is set to be distributed globally, and previous seasons are currently available on Acorn TV, Prime Video, and Apple TV+.