Arnold on Netflix: Schwarzenegger opens up abusive childhood with his Nazi ... trends now
Arnold Schwarzenegger has spoken candidly about the abuse he suffered at the hand of his parents during his upbringing in the upcoming Netflix documentary titled, Arnold.
The Terminator actor, 75, famously grew up in Thal, Austria, with his military father, Gustav - a wartime Nazi party official, and his 'cleanliness fanatic' mother, Aurelia.
In the first episode of the project, the Hollywood icon spoke about what it was really like for him and his late brother to grow up as the son of decorated Nazi soldier, who returned to Austria from the war as a broken man and went on to unleash abuse on his family.
'Our upbringing was very tough. The brutality that would be at home, the beatings that we got from our parents sometimes,' the True Lies star stated.
Arnold Schwarzenegger has spoken candidly about his 'tough' upbringing in the upcoming Netflix documentary, Arnold
The 75-year-old grew up in Thal, Austria, with his military father, Gustav - a wartime Nazi party official, and his 'cleanliness fanatic' mother, Aurelia
The former governor of California explained that children in his town all grew up feeling the after effects of the war because Austria became a country of 'broken' men.
Arnold revealed his belief that his 'tyrant' father may have suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and depression, which was revealed in the way he would 'smack' his children and hit them with 'the belt'.
The Predator star also revealed how his father had 'schizophrenic behavior ' which meant his children never knew if they would be getting the 'kind father' or the one who would come home 'drunk'.
'He would scream at three in the morning and we would wake up and our hearts were pounding because we knew that meant,' he recalled. 'He could, at any given time, strike my mother or go crazy. So there was this strange violence.'
He explained that his father became the chief of county police after the war and described him as a 'tyrant' who was 'very tough' in his role.
Gustav treated his home in the same way and made sure that they were 'no screwing around'.
'He thought he should create discipline in the house... you had to "earn" breakfast,' Arnold recalled.
Meanwhile, his mother would obsessively clean the home, making sure that 'everything was perfectly placed' otherwise she would ‘go nuts’.
Arnold - pictured left, with his mother and half brother, Meinhard - explained that his dad returned to Austria from the war as a broken man and went on to unleash abuse on his family
Back in 2004, Arnold first spoke out about his painful childhood as he described the way his father used to beat him in an attempt to make him 'conform'.
Speaking to Fortune magazine, he stated: 'My hair was pulled. I was hit with belts. So was the kid next door, and so was the kid next door. It was just the way it was.'
Gustav Schwarzenegger (17 August 1907 - 13 December 1972), was a Nazi soldier who fought during World War II
'Many of the children I've seen were broken by
