Daniel Brühl was born in Barcelona, Spain. His father was the German television director Hanno Brühl (1937–2010), born in Sao Paulo, Brazil. His Spanish mother was a teacher. He also has a brother, Oliver, and a sister, Miriam. Shortly after his birth, his family moved to Cologne (Germany), where he grew up and attended the Dreikönigsgymnasium. Raised in a fully multi-lingual home, he is fluent in German, English, Portuguese, Spanish, French and Catalan.