Brigitte Helm (1908-1996) was a German actress, an icon of Expressionist cinema. She achieved worldwide fame with Fritz Lang's *Metropolis* (1927), playing the naive Maria and her malevolent robotic counterpart, a role that cemented her status.

Her acting style combined an ethereal beauty with an enigmatic and sometimes unsettling aura, making her perfect for roles as femmes fatales, tormented or ambiguous characters, to whom she imparted a profound psychological complexity. Other significant films include *Alraune* (1928) and *L'Atlantide* (1932).

Her career, although concentrated in the 1920s and early 1930s, was highly impactful. She retired from acting in 1935, discontent with the film industry under the Nazi regime.