Editor’s note: This story contains spoilers about events related to the movie Nuremberg.
In the mid-1940s, American psychiatrist Douglas Kelley sat eye-to-eye with almost two dozen of the most notorious figures in Germany’s Nazi regime. Nazi Party leader Hermann Göring stood out among all of them.
“He was undoubtedly the most ruthless human being that I have ever experienced,” Kelley wrote of Göring, according to Scientific American.
Kelley’s conversations with the imprisoned German commander—and their important part of the Nuremberg trials following World War II—are the focus of the new biopic Nuremberg. In theaters November 7, the movie stars Rami Malek as Kelley and Russell Crowe as Göring and dramatizes their harrowing interviews during the history-altering military tribunal.
While the real Kelley’s observations offered new understanding of the psyches of prominent Nazi leaders, they also may have set him on the path toward an untimely death.
What was Douglas Kelley’s role at Nuremberg?
Kelley, born on August 11, 1912, earned degrees in medicine and psychology from the University of California and Columbia University, according to The New York Times. During World War II, he served as chief psychiatrist with the 30th General Hospital—a military installation offering aid to American soldiers on the front lines in Europe.
After the surrender of Axis power Germany and the death of Chancellor Adolf Hitler in 1945, military leaders from the United States, United Kingdom, France, and Soviet Union agreed to hold a joint military tribunal in Nuremberg, Germany, seeking to hold prominent Nazi figures accountable for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity—including the Holocaust.
Kelley was assigned competency evaluations for some of the most infamous Nazi figures including Hermann Göring, the former supreme commander of the German air forces who sought to succeed Hitler. Kelley performed Rorschach tests and interviewed 22 defendants to assess if they were competent to stand trial—and able to understand the consequences of their actions.
Kelley interviewed Goring extensively and noted his “extreme egocentricity”
Goring arrived at an American detention center in Mondorf-les-Bains, Luxembourg, in 1945 with 49 suitcases, ornate jewelry and cigarette cases, and a large supply of the narcotic paracodeine, according to Scientific American.
First confronting Goring’s apparent drug dependency, Kelley interviewed the German officer regularly over the next six months, and the two developed a friendly rapport. “Each day when I came to his cell on my rounds, he would jump up from his chair, greet me with a broad smile and outstretched hand, escort me to his cot and pat its middle with his great paw,” Kelley wrote in his journals. Göring even enlisted Kelley’s help in delivering letters to his wife, Emmy, and reuniting her with their daughter, Edda.
Kelley measured Göring’s IQ at 138, third-highest among the incarcerated Nazi officials, and ultimately found him free of psychosis and capable of standing trial. However, he also noted Goring had a dark side to the charm he exhibited.
“Göring is of interest because of his strong personality and his extreme egocentricity,” Kelley told reporter Arthur Gaeth in a radio broadcast about the Nuremberg trials. “He is a forceful leader, without thought of consequence or consideration for others.”
Göring was ultimately sentenced to death for his role during the war. However, hours before his scheduled death by hanging on October 15, 1946, he was found dead in his cell from suicide after ingesting a cyanide capsule.
After returning from the prison, Kelley documented his observations of Göring and other prisoners in the book 22 Cells in Nuremberg, published in January 1947. He also gave interviews and public lectures, gaining prominence for his role in the trials.
Kelley also died by ingesting a cyanide capsule
Kelley, back in the United States, began experimenting with truth serums and pioneered drugs used to treat “mentally disturbed” soldiers who returned from the war. He also gave polygraph tests to criminal suspects, and his investigation of the kidnapping and murder of college student Stephanie Bryan in Berkeley, California, played a key role in the conviction of Burton Abbott in 1955, according to The New York Times.
Soon, however, Kelley’s health declined. According to his personal doctor, he received treatments for a “seriously upset stomach” for months and experienced stress from his business commitments. While it’s unknown if his condition played a role, Kelley died on January 1, 1958, after ingesting a cyanide capsule at his home.
It’s unclear if Kelley’s death was a deliberate suicide attempt or an accident. Initial reports suggested he might have taken the cyanide from Nuremberg—and possibly his former interview subject, Göring. However, Kelley’s widow, Alice-Vivienne Kelley, and son, Doug Kelley, told SFGate in February 2025 it’s impossible to know the true source because of the substances he kept in his home laboratory.
It’s also impossible to determine if the similarities between his death and Göring’s are merely coincidental or somehow tied to their Nuremberg conversations.
“I know it’s ironic,” Doug Kelley said of his father’s death. “I think maybe he knew he was on a runaway train. I think he knew what was inside, but he didn’t know how to make it go away.”
See Nuremberg in theaters starting November 7
Malek, an Academy Award winner for his portrayal of Queen frontman Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody (2018), discussed how the movie is especially relevant amid modern concerns over the protection of human rights.
“I like to think that by taking on a film of this nature, I’m sending a certain message with it as well,” Malek, 44, told the Associated Press. “Sometimes, we question if filmmaking is a frivolous endeavor. I think not, especially with a film like this.”
Nuremberg debuts in theaters November 7. The movie also stars Russell Crowe, Michael Shannon, and John Slattery.
Tyler Piccotti joined the Biography.com staff as an Associate News Editor and is now the News and Culture Editor. He previously worked as a reporter and copy editor for a daily newspaper recognized by the Associated Press Sports Editors. In his current role, he shares the true stories behind your favorite movies and TV shows and profiles rising musicians, actors, and athletes. When he's not working, you can find him at the nearest amusement park or movie theater and cheering on his favorite teams.
