Burkhard Driest ([ˈbʊʁkhaʁt ˈdʁiːst]; 28 April 1939 – 27 February 2020) was a German actor, writer and director, known for his acting work in Sam Peckinpah's Cross of Iron and Rainer Werner Fassbinder's Querelle.
[1] Peter Zadek invited him to play the role of Stanley Kowalski in Endstation Sehnsucht (A Streetcar Named Desire) by Tennessee Williams, with Rosel Zech as Blanche, at the Schauspielhaus Bochum.
[1][4] Driest worked with directors such as Werner Herzog (for Stroszek), Sam Peckinpah (for Cross of Iron), and Reinhard Hauff on four projects.
He wrote together with Lukas Heller the script for the satire Son of Hitler [de], which premiered in 1978 but was a failure with critics and the audience.
[5] Driest wrote versions of the screenplay for Rainer Werner Fassbinder's final film, Querelle, but they were not accepted.
[4][6] Driest wrote texts for the Peter Zadek's musical Andi and revue Falco meets Amadeus at the Theater des Westens.