Leading actor and former congressman Luis Brandoni dies at 86

Iconic actor and former congressman Luis Brandoni died on Monday at 86. The star of landmark Argentine films like Waiting for the Hearse and Rebellion in Patagonia had been hospitalized for a subdural hematoma after suffering a domestic accident on April 11. Brandoni was currently starring in the theater play ¿Quién es quién? (‘Who’s who?’) next to Soledad Silveyra and in pre-production of the second season of the Disney+ series Nada (‘Nothing’), in which he worked along with guest star Robert De Niro.  Born in Dock Sud, Buenos Aires, Brandoni started working in theater and television in the early 1960s. Known for his natural and effective delivery of typically Argentine characters, he also served as a deputy in the late 1990s and ran for both the Senate and for vice governor of Buenos Aires province. His acting career took a big jump in the early 1970s, when he starred in films like Sergio Renán’s The Truce — which was nominated for an Oscar — and Héctor Olivera’s Rebellion in Patagonia (1974), based on Osvaldo Bayer’s book about the mass murder of workers and unionists by Army forces in the 1920s.  Rebellion in Patagonia Featuring a wide acting range, Brandoni worked in more than 60 films, some of them iconic local dramas and comedies of the 1980s and 1990s. These included Alejandro Doria’s 1984 hospital drama State of Reality and 1990 raunchy comedy Cien veces no debo (‘I Shall Not, 100 Times’), Juan José Jusid’s family exile story Made in Argentina (1987) and Carlos Galettini’s 1994 adaptation of the theater play Convivencia (‘Living Together’). His role in the social satire Waiting for the Hearse (originally titled ‘Esperando la carroza’)as a shady businessman reuniting with his lower-class family earned him cult status. His performance in a famous scene — a social commentary known as “three empanadas” — became a piece of Argentine popular culture — and an ubiquitous meme. Esperando la carroza (Waiting for the Hearse) Brandoni also developed an extensive career in television, starring in local hits like Buscavidas (‘Go-getters’) in 1984, Mi cuñado (‘My brother-in-law’) in 1993 and opposite Ricardo Darín, El hombre de tu vida (‘The Perfect Man’) in 2011, and Un gallo para esculapio (‘A Rooster for Esculapio’) in 2017, among many others.   Political career Parallel to his artistic career, Brandoni also maintained a long-standing commitment to political and union activism. He was affiliated with the Radical Civic Union (UCR, in Spanish) and served as secretary general of the actors trade union in the 1970s.  He was forced into exile between 1974 and 1975 after being threatened by the ultra-right wing paramilitary organization Triple A (Argentine Anti-Communist Alliance.) In 1976, shortly after the military coup, Brandoni and his then-wife, actress Marta Bianchi, were kidnapped and tortured at the Army’s Automotores Orletti death camp. They were released hours later on the condition of ceasing any further political activity.  Decades later, Brandoni testified in a trial for crimes against humanity committed in that clandestine center of detention, torture and extermination. Following Argentina’s return to democracy, he served as a cultural policy adviser to President Raúl Alfonsín and later ran for — and won — a seat in the Argentine Chamber of Deputies in 1997, representing Buenos Aires province.  He served until 2001 and later ran unsuccessfully for the Senate and for vice governor of Buenos Aires province on the same ticket as Ricardo Alfonsín, Raul’s son.  Since then, he remained politically active and continued to speak publicly on national issues. He also served in international actors’ organizations and was elected to the Mercosur Parliament in 2023. Argentina’s secretary of culture Leonardo Cifelli described Brandoni as “much more than an extraordinary actor.”“He was an emblem of our cultural identity, an interpreter who knew how to portray the Argentine soul like few others, and a role model whose commitment to his craft made him an example for colleagues, artists and future generations.”