He rose to fame in Europe, and particularly Germany, and also made appearances in international films, including Ten Little Indians and Smilla's Sense of Snow.

He also played a small role in the BBC adaptation of John le Carré's Smiley's People as a German club owner.

[1] Adorf has expressed regret that he declined roles in Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather (1972) and Billy Wilder's One, Two, Three (1961).

He also turned down the role of General Mapache in Sam Peckinpah's The Wild Bunch (1969), because he felt the character was too violent.

In 1996, he provided the German dubbing voice for the character Draco in Dragonheart, a role performed by Sean Connery.