Why Louis Hofmann Didn't Prioritize Joining Acting School?

German actor Louis Hofmann—who played teenage Jonas Kahnwald in the Netflix series Dark—showcased one of his finest acting displays throughout three seasons of the show.

His performance in the series even helped him to bag several acknowledges including ‘Golden Camera Awards’ for ‘Best Young Actor’ in 2018 and ‘Jupiter Award’ for ‘Best German TV Actor’ in 2018.

But many fans of Hofmann might get shocked knowing that their favorite actor never attended any official acting classes, nor he felt the necessity to do so while growing up.

Yes, that’s right.

In this article, know more about your favorite actor’s hobbies while growing up, his acting qualification, and why he never felt the necessity to attend an acting school.

Louis Hofmann Wanted to Become a Soccer Player

Growing up, Louis Hofmann never had in his mind to become an actor.

Instead, he wanted to be a soccer player when he was around “the age of six or seven or eight.”

“I think at the age of six or seven or eight, I wanted to be a football player, just like pretty much every single boy,” remembered Hofmann.

A few years later, the Bensberg, Bergisch Gladbach native, had another plan for himself after completing his high school studies. He was then motivated to pursue psychology and art.

However, he dropped that idea as well when he stopped believing that he could go in that direction.

When I finished high school, I was also very interested in psychology — and art. But I don't believe that I'd study art or psychology, even though I was still saying that two or three years ago.

- Hofmann told Filmfest in July 2019

He Started Acting as a Hobby

Louis Hofmann gave his first shot in front of a TV camera when his mother’s friend—who was a director at German public-broadcasting television channel Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR)—asked him to perform a small role in a children’s television series at the age of 11 in 2008.

He then continued to play the role once in a month for three years. And after three years, the then-rookie realized that he wanted to pursue a career in acting.

Speaking to Sleek magazine in February 2017, the Dark actor remembered that particular instance and explained that he started acting as a hobby.

Hofmann explained, “Then I started acting at the age of 11 as a hobby, but I was really into it and wanted to do it so bad. Then at the age of 15, I realized that I wanted to do this as a job.”

Following that, the German star applied to an acting agency through which he started getting roles in television and movies.

Hofmann Made His Debut in 2010 and Still Has Not Attended Acting School

Dark actor Louis Hofmann made his television movie debut in the year 2010 when he appeared as David Salzbrenner in the movie The Lost Father (German: Der Verlorene Vater).

In the successive years, Hofmann worked in several other movies and TV shows such as Tom Sawyer, Sanctuary, Land of Mine, Red Sparrow, Prelude, Down the River, and Dark, among others.

With such a brilliant career and heartwarming acting performances under his belt, he has kept on growing in his acting skills and fame ever since he started his acting journey.

But what is still fascinating and interesting is that Hofmann never attended any acting school.

Everything we’ve seen and he has showcased on-screen has always been his natural acting prowess.

When Nisimasa magazine asked Hofmann why he never attended an acting school, the actor shared that he couldn’t tell if acting classes were necessary for him. “I can’t really tell if it is necessary. I just know it has worked out so far,” he said.

Later, the young actor also revealed his intentions of learning acting in the future and that he would “spend three or six months in an actors’ studio” either in New York or Los Angeles to learn acting.