Actor and human rights activist Jan Potměšil dies at 60

Stage and film actor Jan Potměšil died on Thursday at the age of 60 years old, his wife, Radka Potměšilová, informed the Czech News Agency. In the past three years the well-known Czech actor,  suffered from serious health problems.

In 1989, Potměšil was actively involved in the anti-communist protests leading up to the Velvet Revolution. He attended demonstrations during Palach Week, distributed the manifesto Several Sentences, and took part in the actors’ strike during the November events. He also joined trips outside the capital in an effort to spread information about the anti-communist protests in Prague.  One of these journeys ended in a traffic accident leaving him confined to a wheelchair at the age of 23.

After a long period of treatment and rehabilitation, Potměšil returned to his acting career. In 2025, he received the Václav Benda Award from the Institute for the Study of Totalitarian Regimes for his courageous civic stance during the communist totalitarian era, his active defense of the values of freedom, democacy, and human rights, and his significant contribution to the restoration of freedom and democracy.