Trivia

Turned down roles in Eyes Wide Shut (1999) and The World Is Not Enough (1999).

Brother of Reinhilde Decleir.

Son Jenne Decleir, born 1978.

Son Flor, born 1990.

Decleir is also Belgium's national performer of Sinterklaas ( Saint Nicholas, patron saint of children) since 1993.

He turned down roles in Stanley Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut (due to commitments to other projects) and the James Bond film The World Is Not Enough.

He played in two movies which won the Academy Award for Foreign Language Film: Antonia's Line (1995) and Character (1997) and in one film which was nominated in the same category: Daens (1992).

Son Jenne Decleir, born December 5, 1977.

Daughter Sofie, born 1975.

Speaks Dutch (mother tongue) and fluent French.

In 2013 he also received the Flemish Culture Prize for General Cultural Merit.

For several years he also lead the Studio Herman Teirnlick where he brought in many new teachers: actors from various theater companies (e.g., de Blauwe Maandag Compagnie, STAN, etc).

To the larger audiences of television he became known through his role of Sil de strandjutter in 1976 in the equally named TV series.

He was previously married to actresses Brit Alen and Caroline van Gastel.

In 2008 he was awarded with the best actor prize at the Tiburon International Film Festival for his role in Man zkt vrouw (A Perfect Match).

He starred in Academy Award winning movies including Karakter by Mike van Diem and Antonia and the Oscar-nominated social drama Daens.

For his role in The Barons, he received the Magritte Award for Best Supporting Actor.

In 2003 he had the starring role in the critically acclaimed thriller The Memory of a Killer (The Alzheimer Case) of which the leading American critic Roger Ebert wrote in his review: "Jan Decleir never goes for the easy effect, never pushes too hard, is a rock-solid occupant of his character. Everything he has to say is embodied, not expressed. Talks are under way for a Hollywood remake, but this performance will not be easily equaled. Gene Hackman, maybe. Morgan Freeman. Robert Mitchum, if he were alive. Decleir is the real thing.".

In the world of theater he gained his fame by acting at the International New Scene for the play Mistero Buffo by Dario Fo.

In 2003 he received Golden Calf Culture Prize (Dutch: Gouden Kalf') and in 2007 a Golden Calf for Best Supporting Actor for the movie Wolfsbergen at the Netherlands Film Festival.

He had his first big role in Fons Rademakers's Mira (1971). Since then, he has appeared in countless Flemish and Dutch films and TV productions.

Over the lifespan of his career Jan Decleir has received several prices for his acting. He was awarded with the Best Actor Award for his role in Off Screen (directed by Pieter Kuijpers) at the Montreal World Film Festival.

Both his siblings - sister Reinhilde Decleir and brother Dirk Decleir (died in 1974) have been involved in acting, too.