Herlitzka was born in Turin, the second son after his brother Paolo, to Bruno Herlitzka, a Czech Jew from Brno who emigrated with his family, and to Micaela Berruti, a Catholic Italian who worked as a translator. His parents' marriage ended with a declaration of nullity, and his father, after marrying the painter Giorgina Lattes, emigrated to Argentina in January 1939 to escape the Italian racial laws, which he and his brother also escaped by temporarily obtaining their mother's surname, Berruti. In 1947, his half-sister Laura Herlitzka was born in Buenos Aires. He studied at the Massimo D'Azeglio high school in Turin and enrolled in Literature at the University of Turin, but soon moved to Rome to live with his father, who had become a gallery owner there. He studied under Orazio Costa at the National Academy of Dramatic Arts. In the 2002–2003 and 2003–2004 theater seasons he won the Ubu award as best Italian actor.[2]
In 2004 he was awarded a Nastro d'argento as best actor and a David di Donatello as best supporting actor for his performance as Aldo Moro in Marco Bellocchio's film Good Morning, Night (which also earned him the Horcynus Orca award for four years later), and received the Gassman Award as best actor for the theatrical performances Let Me Go Mother and Lighea. In 2013, at the fourth edition of the Bari International Film Festival, he obtained again the Gassman Award for being the best leading actor for the film The Red and the Blue.[3]
Herlitzka died in Rome on 31 July 2024, at the age of 86. His health declined after his wife's death a few months earlier.[4][5]
