Maarten Spanjer: Life, Career and Legacy (1952–2026)

On the night of October 16 to 17, 2026, Dutch actor, TV presenter, and writer Maarten Spanjer died at 73 in a hospice in Ouderkerk aan de Amstel. The Netherlands lost one of its most recognizable faces — the man who drove a taxi full of hidden cameras, starred in Paul Verhoeven's Spetters, and spent his final months writing about dying with a joke always within reach. And now, in a remarkable twist, he isn't quite done talking: De Telegraaf plans to publish the roughly 18 columns he wrote but never lived to see printed.

Who Was Maarten Spanjer?

Born in Amsterdam on October 24, 1952, Maarten Spanjer became a household name through film, television, advertising, and later, books and columns. He never fit neatly into one box: a film actor discovered by Paul Verhoeven, a TV host who won the Golden Rose of Montreux, a beloved commercial face, and finally a columnist who turned his own illness into some of the sharpest writing of his career.

That restlessness was the point. As Privé editor-in-chief Evert Santegoeds put it, Spanjer never felt the need to fit in.

Spetters: The Film That Started Everything

Spanjer's breakthrough came in 1980 with Spetters, directed by Paul Verhoeven. He played Hans, one of two young motocross racers chasing fame alongside their mechanic Eef, opposite Rutger Hauer and Renée Soutendijk. The film sparked protests over its frank portrayal of sex, homosexuality, and Dutch provincial life — and pulled more than 1.1 million admissions in the Netherlands alone.

Spetters became a touchstone of Dutch cinema, with an 86% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and helped launch Verhoeven, Hauer, and several cast members internationally. For Spanjer, it was the launchpad: the fresh-faced 27-year-old had announced himself as a screen actor with real presence.

Taxi: The Show That Made Him Unforgettable

If Spetters made Spanjer an actor, Taxi made him a national institution. In the 1990s, he drove around the Netherlands as an apparently ordinary taxi driver, chatting with unsuspecting passengers while hidden cameras recorded everything. Spanjer had a rare gift: he could crack the ice with a dry remark and, minutes later, listen as someone told him their life story.

The show was a phenomenon and earned the Golden Rose of Montreux (1995), among Europe's most respected television awards. Few hosts ever matched Spanjer's mix of wit and warmth.

The Character Actor, the Commercial Star, the Writer

Spanjer's screen work went far beyond those two landmarks. He starred in the first two De Schippers van de Kameleon (Kameleon) films as Gerben Zonderland. In the 1980s he became known for the satirical Voetbal '80, playing characters like Drs. Vijfje and the "Voetbalombudsman." In the late 1990s, he formed an iconic duo with Rijk de Gooyer in a string of KPN commercials as Beun de Haas — spots that became Dutch advertising folklore.

Parallel to all of this, he built a career as an author. From 1986 onward he published books including Eigen schuld, Moedeloos voorwaarts, Maarten maakt vrienden, and Geluk is een herinnering. For his 70th birthday he released De kunst van het loslaten (The Art of Letting Go) — a title that reads very differently now.

The Final Columns: Uitgeluld

Late in 2025, Spanjer was diagnosed with bladder and prostate cancer and underwent a major operation in which his bladder and prostate were removed. He seemed to recover — by summer 2026 he said he felt good and was out among people again — but new metastases were found, and in his final two weeks his health declined sharply, as his friend Monique Waterham confirmed to De Telegraaf.

But Spanjer did something unusual with his illness: he wrote about it. In the hospital after his operation, he kept notes. Those notes became Uitgeluld, a weekly column in De Telegraaf's Privé section that began at the end of August 2026. He wrote about the stoma bag, the nurses' jargon, the vanity he lost — all in his trademark deadpan, the punchline always aimed at himself. One famous bit: a nurse asked if he'd had a bowel movement yet. "No," he said. "Just a cup of tea and a rusk."

In total, he wrote about 25 columns — only seven were published before he died. The news that even his final week produced a column tells you everything about how he faced the end: not solemnly, but with a notebook.

Why His Unpublished Columns Matter

On October 18, 2026, Villamedia/ANP reported that De Telegraaf plans to publish the remaining columns. Santegoeds said Spanjer loved writing them — he hadn't even thought of the idea himself; someone else suggested he write down everything he went through in the hospital. "I find it admirable, all those columns," he said. It isn't yet clear whether they will appear weekly or faster.

These columns matter for two reasons. First, they're a final act of honesty from a man whose whole career was built on it — the same directness that made Taxi work, applied to his own body failing him. Second, writing about cancer treatment, stomas, and hospital absurdity in plain, funny language strips away fear and stigma around illness. That's a legacy no film role can match.

The Netherlands has a habit of producing entertainers who feel like family — from chart-topping DJs like Armin van Buuren and Hardwell to comedians like Dylan Haegens. But Spanjer belonged to a generation that did it with a camera in a taxi and a notepad in a hospital bed.

Maarten Spanjer's Legacy

Spanjer leaves behind work that spans the most popular corners of Dutch culture: a controversial film classic, a prize-winning TV format, beloved commercials, a shelf of books, and — now — a stack of unpublished columns that will let him speak from beyond his own final page. His football-analyst friend René van der Gijp told stories of their adventures on Vandaag Inside for years. Quick, blunt, curious about people, and never afraid to be the butt of the joke: in his columns about dying, he was exactly that to the end.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who was Maarten Spanjer?

Maarten Spanjer (1952–2026) was a Dutch actor, TV presenter, writer, and columnist — known for Spetters (1980), the hidden-camera hit Taxi, the Kameleon films, and his De Telegraaf columns. He died on October 17, 2026, at 73.

What films was Maarten Spanjer in?

His signature film role was Hans in Paul Verhoeven's Spetters (1980). He also played Gerben Zonderland in the first two Kameleon films, alongside fame from Taxi, Voetbal '80, and the Beun de Haas KPN commercials.

What are the unpublished Maarten Spanjer columns?

Before his death, Spanjer wrote about 25 columns about his cancer treatment and hospital experiences for De Telegraaf's Privé section under the title Uitgeluld. Only seven were published before he died. According to Privé editor-in-chief Evert Santegoeds, De Telegraaf plans to publish the remaining roughly 18 columns.

About the Author

Sidra Salman is the founder of Dutch Stars Bio, where she writes practical, research-backed guides on biographies of Dutch celebrities. Every guide is tested and written in plain English for a US audience.