Ronald Zehrfeld, born 1977 in East Berlin, started to study German studies, literature, linguistics, and political science in Berlin, but then changed to acting and started to attend drama school at Hochschule für Schauspielkunst Ernst Busch in Berlin. He then performed at Berliner Ensemble, at Deutsches Theater Berlin, and at Hamburg"s St. Pauli Theater.

In 2005, Zehrfeld made his movie debut in a leading role in Dominik Graf"s film "Der Rote Kakadu" ("The Red Cockatoo"). Besides his theatre career, Zehrfeld has since been seen in several TV productions, including the ambitious drama "Die russische Geliebte" alongside Iris Berben. After his leading role on the movie screen in the relationship drama "In jeder Sekunde" ("At Any Second", 2008), Zehrfeld played the leading role in the comedic pirate movie "Zwölf Meter ohne Kopf" ("Pirates of the Baltic Sea"): In the film directed by Sven Taddicken, Zehrfeld portrayed the famous pirate Klaus Störtebeker.