Foreign stars who understand Russian. Hollywood stars with Russian roots

Originally from Russia. On my mother's side - from Odessa, and on my father's side - from a small Ukrainian village. The family cherished traditions: they spoke Russian and Yiddish, and, according to the director himself, Ukrainian borsch has always been a favorite dish. Mama Leah often cooked it at the request of little Steve. To this day, she can freely communicate with Russians in their native language and sing folk songs. But Stephen knows only a few words in Russian. By the way, Spielberg's ancestors are not the only connection with the Slavs: the husband of his sister Sue is a distant relative of Boris Pasternak.

The actress is born Helen Lydia Mironoff. She was born into a family of descendants of aristocrats who fled Russia after the 1917 revolution. The estate of the grandfather of actress Pyotr Mironov, a tsarist colonel and diplomat, was located near the city of Gzhatsk (since 1968, the city of Gagarin). Helen's father was brought to London from Russia when he was less than three years old. In the 1950s, Vasily Petrovich Mironov became Basil Mirren.

“In our family album there is a photograph of my grandfather Pyotr Mironov in the form of an officer tsarist army, says the actress. - Grandfather was a staunch monarchist, never reconciled with the fall of the tsarist regime in Russia. He fled with his wife and two-year-old son Vasily, my father, to England. Being engaged in the purchase of weapons for the tsarist army, grandfather often visited London on business, and therefore preferred Great Britain. Dad recalled that his father missed Russia very much and suffered from the thought that he would never be able to return there.

As a child, Helen never learned Russian and knows only a small number of common words.

“Until recently, I knew practically nothing about my Russian roots,” the actress complains. - My Russian grandfather died when I was only seven years old, and my grandmother died soon after. Their letters, papers, documents have been in our house all these years, but I do not speak the language and could not read anything. During the filming of the last part of the detective television series Prime Suspect, I met his translator, whom I then asked to take care of my grandfather's papers. On a tour of the Kremlin, I found in one of the halls the name of my paternal great-great-great-great-grandfather, Field Marshal Kamensky, who fought against Napoleon. I hope that in the near future I will learn much more about my Russian ancestors.”

Odessa mother of Sylvester Stallone

Unusual adventures awaited the grandparents of another American Russian - - right on the outskirts of the States. The real name of the ancestors of Winona who emigrated to America from Russia was Tomchina. The emigration services somehow mixed up the personal data of one family with another, so the Tomchins entered America as Horowitz. They did not forget their Russian roots: Winona's brother was named Uri - in honor of Yuri Gagarin. The grandmother of the actress, who lived to be 100 years old, often told Winona about her Russian roots. “Most of my paternal relatives died in the camps,” says Ryder. “This is my family, and to pay tribute to them, my dream is to make some kind of film about Russia and World War II.”

The grandmother of actor Harrison Ford, Anna Lifshuts, left Minsk in 1907. Already in the USA, she met Harry Nidelman, also a Jew who had fled from Minsk. Harry managed to get a job as a tram driver in Brooklyn, and soon the young people got married. From this marriage, the daughter Dorothy was born, who in the future was destined to become the mother of a Hollywood star. Dorothy Ford's real name is Dora Nidelman. In her youth, out of a sense of protest, the girl changed her name: she was annoyed by the Jewish traditions of their family. But Harrison Ford was named after Harry's grandfather. Answering a question about his Russian-Jewish-Irish roots (the father of the actor is Irish. - Approx. “TN”), Harrison Ford jokes: “As a person, I’m rather Irish. As an actor, I am Jewish." Now Ford is not without help public organizations searches for relatives who live in the territory former USSR. However, his relatives have not yet been found.

Ford's colleague in the acting department and parents are from Kyiv. When the grandparents of the actor were shot by the Bolsheviks during the repressions, the family emigrated to the States. Dustin was born there.

Sylvester Stallone was born in New York. His father, hairdresser Frank Stallone, came to the States from Sicily, and his mother, astrologer Jacklyn Stallone-Leibofish, was born in Odessa, in a Jewish family. Not so long ago, she specially came to South Palmyra to find relatives who remained in Ukraine after part of the Leibofish family emigrated abroad. Stallone gladly recognizes himself as our compatriot. When one of the vodka brands offered him to star in an advertisement where he had to say the phrase "Each of us has a piece of Russian!", Sly agreed.

"California Fornicator" David Duchovny is Russian by his grandfather. More precisely, again, a Russian Jew. His father's name was Amram Dukhovny, and he came from a family of emigrants from the USSR. At one time, Amram changed the letter "X" in his last name to "K" and dropped the last one, "Y", - it was easier for Americans to pronounce his last name as "Dukovny". However, David returned the letter to its place. The actor does not speak Russian, but is fluent in Hebrew. But David loves Russian literature, especially Dostoevsky. “He is very easy to understand,” Duchovny assures.

Sean Penn's mother is from an Irish family, and his father is a Jew with Russian-Lithuanian roots. The surname of Sean's father's parents, Leo Penn, was Pinon, but after emigrating to the United States, they anglicized it. In the 1950s, the name of Leo Penn, an actor and television director who, among other things, shot several episodes of the series " Star Trek” and “Colombo,” was blacklisted by the Commission on Un-American Activities for refusing to testify against colleagues in anti-communist hearings.

Grandmother was called Elizaveta Smirnova. After the revolution, the parents took little Lisa from the newly-made USSR to Germany, where she grew up and got married. Her daughter, Leo's mother, moved to the USA. When the famous grandson of the Russian grandmother Lisa was in St. Petersburg and participated in the International Forum on the Conservation of the Tiger Population on Earth, he managed to talk with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. The conversation also touched on the origin of the actor. “The surname of my ancestors was Smirnov,” said DiCaprio. “A famous surname,” Putin smiled. - Do you speak Russian?" “No, but if my grandmother was here, she would chat with you,” DiCaprio replied. - I always wanted to bring her to St. Petersburg, but, unfortunately, these plans will no longer be realized, since she died. My grandfather was also Russian. So I’m not a quarter, but half Russian.”

The widow of The Beatles leader John Lennon, Yoko Ono, was very fond of her Russian aunt Anna. In 1914, Anna Bubnova, the sister of the then-famous artist Varvara Bubnova, met a Japanese volunteer at Petrograd University, Shun'ichi Ono, became his wife and left for his homeland, Tokyo. In the early 1920s, together with her mother, Varvara Bubnova went to Japan to visit her sister, and her visit dragged on for 40 years. In Tokyo, the sisters Varvara and Anna Bubnova took an active part in the upbringing. The girl was the niece of Anna Bubnova-Ono by her husband. A few years ago, Yoko visited the Pushkin House Museum in Bernovo, where her aunts used to visit. “It seems to me,” she said, “that I have returned to my home from a long, long journey. Here, within these walls, I have a strange feeling that I am half Russian.” In Russian, the famous Japanese woman knows only three words: “thank you”, “hello”, “goodbye”. After a walk in the park, Yoko Ono was invited to dinner. On the table were potatoes, cottage cheese, salmon, red caviar, sausage, milk. Youko ate everything on both cheeks, except for the vodka.

Soviet-born Mila Kunis

Several young Hollywood stars were born in the expanses of the former USSR. For example, the actor was born in Leningrad. When the baby was six months old, Anton's parents, professional skaters, moved to Los Angeles. “I don’t remember Russia,” Anton complains. “But I love them, as well as my relatives who stayed with me there. In 2007, I starred in the Russian-American film You and Me (originally called In Search of t.A.T.u.). I agreed to this job only for the sake of visiting Russia. Filming took place in Moscow, Yaroslavl and Los Angeles, but I was absent for a few days - I went to my hometown. He visited Shipbuilders Street, where he lived for up to six months, made friends with his uncle, visited the grave of his grandparents. Petersburg is a city of outstanding beauty. But, to be honest, I liked Moscow more. It better reflects the Russian character and Russian history with all its invasions, moments of crisis and restructuring. St. Petersburg is a quieter, European city that could be in Germany or France. Moscow, it seems to me, reflects the Russian essence more. Although, perhaps, the Russians know better.

Ashton Kutcher's fiancee Milena Markovna Kunis was born on August 14, 1983 in Chernivtsi, Ukraine. In 1991, Mila Kunis emigrated to Los Angeles with her parents. “My parents wanted me and my brother Mikhail to have a future,” the actress shares. So they threw everything into communist USSR and came to the USA with $250 in their pocket. In second grade, I cried every day. I didn't understand American culture, people, language. My first sentence in my college application essay was, “Imagine being deaf and blind at age seven.” That’s how I felt about myself when I moved to the States.” But already at the age of nine, Mila spoke English without an accent, and soon began acting in films. Mila has not forgotten the Russian language, but she prefers to give interviews even to her former compatriots in English. The actress is proud of her roots, moreover, she claims that she has some features characteristic of Russians and Ukrainians - perseverance and the ability to withstand troubles.

Was born in Kyiv. Her mother, Galina Loginova, was an actress, and her father, Bogi Jovovich, was a pediatrician from Yugoslavia. Milla spent the first five years of her life in the Soviet Union, and in 1980 the family moved to London, and then to Sacramento (USA), finally settling in Los Angeles. Leaving the USSR, Galina was absolutely sure that Hollywood was waiting for her. But she couldn't get rid of her accent. Not a single agent was interested in her. Bogey's medical background was also not recognized by American health authorities. So the Jovovichs had to work as servants. Galina Loginova for a long time could not come to terms with the fact that her acting career failed in the USA. Milla had to embody the unrealized dreams of her mother. And she has been very successful at it. Milla loves everything Russian - from caviar to Akhmatova's poetry. “I am very proud of my Russian roots. The willpower that I feel in myself, I owe entirely to my origin, ”Milla Jovovich says in almost every interview. She tries to speak Russian with her mother so as not to forget the language. But at the same time, of course, he speaks with a monstrous accent. Milla Jovovich dreams of playing the last Russian Empress Alexandra Feodorovna and the poetess Anna Akhmatova.

Natalie spoke both English and Russian perfectly and considered herself "very Russian".

Interestingly, there are many stars with Russian (or at least Slavic) roots in Hollywood. Here are 14 more examples that prove it.

Leonardo DiCaprio

Leonardo DiCaprio's grandmother's name was Elizaveta Smirnova. After the revolution, the parents took little Lisa to Germany. She, in turn, then moved to the United States.

Nicole Scherzinger

The father of the burning brunette Nicole Scherzinger is Filipino, and her mother is half Hawaiian, half Russian in the female line.

I must say, the girl's parents paid tribute to her origin, and therefore full name the singer sounds like this - Nicole Elikolani Praskovya Scherzinger.

Michael Douglas

The grandfather of Michael Douglas once emigrated from Russia in order to avoid participation in the Russo-Japanese War. His surname sounded like Danielovich-Demsky, but Michael's father (famous actor Kirk Douglas) chose not to stand out from the crowd with such a complicated surname and became just Douglas.

Gwyneth Paltrow

The surname of another Hollywood star has been changed. Gwyneth Paltrow's father was a descendant of the Paltrovich family from Russia, who lived in Minsk. Having left for America, they slightly changed their surname - it turned out to be Paltrow.

The actress herself proudly says that she belongs to such an amazing nation as the Russians.

David Duchovny

The X-Files star is Russian by father. His father's name was Amram Spiritual. At one time, he changed the letter "x" in his last name to "k" - to make it easier for Americans to pronounce it. However, David returned the letter to its rightful place.

Steven Spielberg

Both grandfathers of director Steven Spielberg are from Russia. And the husband of his sister Susan is a distant relative of Boris Pasternak.

Sylvester Stallone

Could the modest Jewish girl Rosa Rabinovich, born in pre-revolutionary Russia in Odessa, imagine that her great-grandson would become a world celebrity and that he would be called Sylvester Stallone? Maybe not, but that's exactly what happened.

Winona Ryder

Actress - née Winona Laura Horowitz. But this name is not her real name. Her real name might be Winona Tomchina. Her father Michael's family fled Russia, and the US immigration authorities strangely confused their last name with that of other emigrants.

It turned out that they left Russia as Tomchins, and entered America as Horovits.

Milla Jovovich

Supermodel and actress Milla Jovovich was born in Kyiv. Her mother, Galina Loginova, was famous actress, and his father is a doctor from Yugoslavia. Jovovich spent the first five years of her life in the USSR and still speaks excellent Russian.

Natalie Portman

The parents of the Oscar-winning actress are Jews from Moldova. They moved from Chisinau to Israel, and from there they emigrated to America. The real name of Natalie is Hershlag.

Harrison Ford

Harrison Ford's mother's name was Dora Nidelman. Her mother Anna, Ford's grandmother, left Minsk in 1907. At one time, Ford, with the help of public organizations, was engaged in the search for great-great-grandfathers and distant relatives who live in the territory of the former USSR.

Natalie Wood is recognized as one of the most significant actresses in classic Hollywood, but the real name of the star is Natalia Zakharenko, and her parents are from Russia. Although Natalie was born in San Francisco, she never forgot her origins. The actress brilliantly spoke the language of her ancestors and said more than once that she felt "very Russian" in her soul.

In fact, if you take a closer look at Hollywood, it turns out that there are still many extraordinarily talented and famous personalities with Russian roots. In support of this, we present to your attention 14 of the most striking examples.

Gwyneth Paltrow

The actress can be safely considered our compatriot - Gwyneth's father came from the Russian Paltrovich family. After moving to the USA, the representatives of the family slightly corrected the surname so that it sounded American, - in the end it turned out to be Paltrow. Like Natalie Wood, Gwyneth was born in the States and remembers her origins. The actress always speaks with great respect for the Russian people.

Michael Douglas

Michael Douglas also has Russian roots. The actor's grandfather lived in Russia and bore the surname Danielovich-Demsky. He left the country to avoid military service and participation in the Russo-Japanese War. Michael's father, already a full-fledged citizen of the United States, decided not to stand out from the crowd and simplified his name: from Issur Danielovich-Demsky, he "transformed" into Kirk Douglas.

Mila Kunis

Mila was born in the Ukrainian city of Chernivtsi, then her name was Milena Markovna Kunis. The parents of the actress emigrated to America in search of a better life when she was only seven years old. The first years in the USA were a real test for the girl, because she did not know a single word in English. Of course, now Mila is fluent in this language, but she speaks Russian with her parents and daughter. The actress admits that although she spent her whole life in America, the Russian language is still the most beautiful and native for her.

Winona Ryder

At birth, Winona received the surname Horowitz, but it is not real. In fact, the performer should have been called Winona Tomchina. The fact is that the grandparents of the star, when moving from Russia to America, became victims of an accidental mistake by the emigration service. Employees confused the surname of Winona's relatives with the surname of other emigrants, and as a result they entered the United States not as Tomchins, but as Horowits.

Harrison Ford

The ancestors of the famous "Indiana Jones" come from Minsk, which formerly belonged to Russian Empire. Harrison Ford's grandmother left the country at the beginning of the 20th century. Anna Lifshits moved to New York, where she gave birth to the actor's mother, Dora. Ford believes that knowing your roots is very important, so once he even set out to find his overseas relatives. He also came to Russia during the filming of the film K-19, in which he played submarine captain Alexei Vostrikov. After Ford admitted that he noticed in the people around him the same features that his grandparents had.

Nicole Scherzinger

Looking at the dark-skinned Nicole, it is hard to believe that Russian blood flows in her veins, nevertheless it is so. The singer's father is from the Philippines, but her mother has Hawaiian-Russian roots (the performer's grandmother was born in Vladivostok). Admittedly, the parents paid tribute to the origin of their daughter, giving her the name Nicole Praskovia Elikolani Valiente Scherzinger. As for the singer herself, she often says that she feels Russian to a greater extent.

David Duchovny

X-Files star David Duchovny is a second-generation immigrant. The actor's ancestors are Russian Jews. His grandfather Moishe Dukhovny moved to the USA from Ukraine, and he has relatives in Russia. Previously, David was proud of his origin and spoke with pleasure about the homeland of his ancestors, but after 2014 he radically changed his position. The actor said that before the events in Ukraine he considered himself Russian, but now he realized that he had always been a Ukrainian. "It's never too late to change," Duchovny concluded in an interview.

Milla Jovovich

Milla Jovovich is an American actress with Russian-Serbian roots. She was born in Kyiv, but her mother Galina Loginova is Russian and her father Bogic Jovovich is from Montenegro. Milla spent the first five years of her life in the USSR, and then moved to England with her family. Now the actress lives in the USA, but does not forget who her ancestors were. Milla says she owes her willpower to her roots. It is noteworthy that she is still fluent in Russian.

Sylvester Stallone

American actor Sylvester Stallone is related not only to Italians, but also to Russian Jews. His grandparents were born in Odessa, in pre-revolutionary Russia, and in 1888 emigrated to Washington. Charles and Rosa Leibofish certainly could not have imagined that their grandson would one day become a Hollywood star. However, they would certainly be proud of Sylvester, just as he is now of his origin. Stallone claims that he likes the Russian people and their strong spirit.

Natalie Portman

The parents of this performer are Moldovan Jews. Avner and Shelly are originally from Chisinau, but even before Natalie was born, they moved to Jerusalem. When the girl was three years old, the family once again changed their place of residence. Portman's parents moved to the United States, where their daughter later became famous. By the way, real name Natalie sounds a little different - Hershlag.

Leonardo DiCaprio

Leonardo DiCaprio's grandmother's name was Elizaveta Smirnova. She was born in Russia, but during the formation of the USSR, her parents took her to Germany. She married there, and her daughter then moved to the United States. It is interesting that Leonardo, already being famous, came to Russia and, in a conversation with Vladimir Putin, said that his grandfather was also Russian. Thus, the actor is not a quarter Russian, as everyone thought, but half.

Helen Mirren

This Oscar-winning Hollywood actress is known all over the world for her role as Elizabeth II from the movie "The Queen", but not many viewers know that Helen Mirren came from a Russian aristocratic family, and her real name is Elena Mironova. Helen's parents emigrated to Britain after the Bolsheviks came to power. They never returned to their homeland, since the father of the actress Pyotr Vasilyevich was a staunch supporter of the monarchy and could not come to terms with the fall of the tsarist regime. Only after sixty years did Helen Mirren come to Russia to look at her father's estate in the Smolensk region and find her relatives.

Steven Spielberg

The creator of a series of films about the adventures of Indiana Jones comes from a family of Polish and Russian Jews. The director's grandparents - Samuel Spielberg and Rebecca Chechwick - are from Russia, and his mother's father Philip Posner is from Ukraine. It is noteworthy that the husband of Stephen's sister Susan is a distant relative of the poet Boris Pasternak. Spielberg, like many of the celebrities in our review, is very proud of his lineage. The director has repeatedly admitted in an interview that he considers himself Russian.

Anton Yelchin

Anton Yelchin (in the main photo) was born in St. Petersburg, and when he was six months old, together with his parents, professional skaters, he went to the USA. During his lifetime, this actor had just begun to conquer Hollywood and would certainly have achieved great success in his career if an accident had not taken his life in 2016. Anton was buried in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, where all people associated with the Hollywood film industry are buried.

An interesting profession is an actor, you constantly have to learn something new. For example, language. Today we have collected almost a dozen Hollywood stars who, with varying degrees of success, but still mastered the great and mighty. For some, he remained native, despite moving to the States, for some it is an acquired skill, honed specifically for the role.

In any case, extremely curious.

Kate Beckinsale

Beckinsale is not only an incredible beauty, but also the same smart one. The actress speaks French, German and Russian. She studied Russian at Oxford University College, along with classical Russian literature. “I have always loved Russian classics: Akhmatova, Chekhov. When I played in The Seagull, I met the father of my child, ”says Beckinsale. Sometimes the actress boasts of her skill, answering journalists' questions in Russian. She told Ivan Urgant that she wrote secret notes to herself in Cyrillic so that no one would understand them.

Mila Kunis

About the fact that nee Milena Markovna Kunis moved with her family from Ukraine to America, only the lazy do not know. At the age of 7, her parents took the girl away towards a better life, which, by the way, she does not regret. At home, the family still speaks Russian. “For outsiders, Russian sounds like Klingon, but for me it is the language of love and tenderness. Some, when they hear me talking on the phone with dad, they think we are arguing, and he just asks how I am doing, ”the actress laughs. Mila admits that she is always worried when she is asked to speak Russian in public, and that it is much easier for her to communicate with her grandparents. However, the actress kept some Slavic traditions in her family. For example, the son of Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher is called Dmitry by a simple sonorous name.

Milla Jovovich

Another Ukrainian Milla, whom her parents first took to London as a child. and then to the States, where a nimble mother became her agent and helped her arrange a model and acting career. The Russian language, however, Jovovich has not forgotten and chats in it at any opportunity, constantly laughing and asking “how is it right”. My youngest daughter the actress named Dashiel, but in everyday life she simply calls her - Dasha. The star even starred in the Russian film "Freaks" with Konstantin Khabensky and Ivan Urgant, with whom she is now very friendly.

Rife Fiennes

The prominent Briton has been interested in Russian culture and language since childhood. According to him, his mother taught him Russian classics, as a young man, the actor met Dostoevsky and Pushkin. And he undertook to learn the language during the filming of Vera Glagoleva's film "Two Women" based on Turgenev's play "A Month in the Country". Now he uses the skill infrequently, but he admits that the Russian language is rich and powerful, and in it, as in the Russian soul, "there are a lot of rooms, a whole life is not enough to see everything."

Eli Roth

Who would have known that the Zhid-Bear could speak Russian too. As a child, Roth, according to him, for some reason wanted to learn Russian. And taught. He speaks it very badly, but he speaks! 20 years ago, the actor visited Moscow and St. Petersburg, and later returned to Russia with the project "The Last Exorcism".

Jared Leto

Well, Jared Leto is not exactly speaking Russian, but rather, he constantly repeats a few obscene phrases, like “Fuck ... accordion ass.” The Russian actor played in the "Lord of War", where they are paired with Nicolas Cage with an incredibly funny accent, but on serious cabbage soup they had dialogues in the great and mighty. Summer did not begin to learn the language completely, saying that it is very difficult, it must be respected and you can’t joke with it. But now the artist constantly confesses his love to Russia and Russian young ladies, whom he already had several.

Danny DeVito

Once DeVito voiced the cartoon "Lorax". The actor does not speak any language other than his native English. But he got so into the taste that he wanted to voice the Lorax in Spanish, German, and Russian. And if you watched the cartoon and wondered why the Lorax is so funny talking, it's because DeVito voiced him without doubles.

Helen Mirren

Elena Vasilievna Mironova was born already in London, where her father Vasily Mironov worked. The mother of the actress is English. The girl's father wanted to settle in Britain and believed that the family would never be able to return to Russia, so he changed his name to Basil, his daughter's name to Helen and did not teach the girl Russian. Mirren, however, has always said that she is proud of her Russian roots and that she is still half Russian. The actress decided to learn the language for filming in the film "Payback". “My heroine speaks the language of my ancestors, the language is complex and beautiful. It was a challenge to teach him,” says Mirren.

Emir Kusturica

Kusturica is not exactly a Hollywood star, and in general he is like a native to us. The Serbian and Yugoslav director is doing his best to support Russia both culturally and politically. In the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, for example, Kusturica repeatedly publicly supported the Russian side, spoke quite warmly about Putin's policies and sang Russian songs. According to the director himself, this could be the reason that his latest work"On the Milky Way" was not taken to Cannes.

Liev Schreiber

The actor and director undertook to learn Russian together with Daniel Craig for the filming of the film "The Challenge", where the guys played Jewish brothers during the Second World War. However, Craig, for example, was completely unable to understand Russian, and it is absolutely impossible to understand what he is saying. But here Schreiber has succeeded quite well: he has a good pronunciation, everything is in order with intonations, and now he is still able to understand some expressions. However, the actor cannot maintain a conversation in Russian.

Robin Williams

A man of many talents, Williams was also good at foreign languages. For the role in "Moscow on the Hudson" actor whole year crammed the language and studied Russian traditions. According to him, this role is one of his favorites, and he learned the language in order to speak on behalf of his character, a Russian immigrant, with the right accent and better understand him.

Anton Yelchin

Let's end on a sad note. Young Anton Yelchin's parents, professional figure skaters, were taken to the United States as an infant. At home, however, the family continued to communicate in Russian, so Anton learned the language well and used it quite confidently, albeit with an accent.

While politicians are making plans and thinking about how to increase their rating in the international arena and take their place under the sun - They have already done everything. Millions of people of different nationalities and faiths obeyed them. They are Hollywood stars with Russian roots.

Natalie Wood


Perhaps the most famous star Hollywood, who never hid the Russian part of history in her biography - Natalie Wood. The actress was nominated three times for the most honored award - the Oscar.

Real name - Natalia Zakharenko. Parents were emigrants from Russia: mother - Maria Zudilova from Barnaul, father - Nikolai Zakharenko - a resident of Vladivostok. Having received US citizenship, they changed their surname to Gurdin. Natalie Wood - spoke English and Russian fluently, and considered herself "very Russian".

Leonardo DiCaprio


Leonardo DiCaprio is an American actor and producer.

He was nominated four times for an Oscar, the same for a BAFTA and eleven times for a Golden Globe. In 2016, he won an Oscar in the Best Actor nomination, a winner of three Golden Globe awards. The idol of millions began his career in the first half of the 1990s. Leonardo DiCaprio's grandmother's name was Elizaveta Smirnova. After the revolution, the parents took little Lisa to Germany. She, in turn, then moved to the United States. According to the actor, his grandfather was also Russian.

Mila Kunis


Mila Kunis is an American film actress and model. One of the most successful roles, a 33-year-old native of the USSR, a ballerina - Lily in the film "Black Swan". For this role, she was awarded the Saturn Award and was nominated for the Golden Globe and the US Screen Actors Guild Award.

Milena Markovna Kunis was born in Chernivtsi. When she was still young, her parents emigrated to the United States.

Milena is one of the most Russian-speaking Hollywood stars.

She is also known for her role in the film "Friends with Benefits"

Natalie Portman


Natalie Portman is an American actress, director, screenwriter and producer. Known for the films "Leon", "Proximity", " Star Wars". Winner of the Oscar, Golden Globe, BAFTA and Saturn awards in the nomination "Best Actress" in the film "Black Swan".

The parents of the actress are Jews from Moldova. They moved from Chisinau to Israel, and from there they emigrated to America. Natalie's real surname is Hershlag.

Gwyneth Paltrow


Gwyneth Paltrow is an American actress and singer. Winner of "Oscar" and "Golden Globe" for the main female role in the film "Shakespeare in Love", as well as "Emmy". The name of this Hollywood star has also been changed. Gwyneth Paltrow's father was a descendant of the Paltrovich family from Russia, who lived in Minsk. After leaving for America, they became Paltrow.

David Duchovny


David Duchovny is an actor, screenwriter, producer, director, writer and musician. Two-time winner of the Golden Globe Award for his roles as agent Fox Mulder in the television series The X-Files and writer-womanizer Hank Moody in the television series Californication.

The X-Files star is Russian by father. His father's name was Amram Spiritual. At one time, he changed the letter "x" in his last name to "k" - to make it easier for Americans to pronounce it. However, David put the "x" back in place.

Milla Jovovich


Milla Jovovich is an American actress of Russian-Serbian origin, musician, model and fashion designer.

Milla Jovovich was born in Kyiv. Her mother, Galina Loginova, was a famous actress, and her father was a doctor from Yugoslavia. Jovovich spent the first five years of her life in the USSR and still speaks excellent Russian.

Harrison Ford


Harrison Ford is an American actor and producer. Nominated for an Oscar, BAFTA, four-time nominee and winner of the Golden Globe Award. He is best known for his participation in the Star Wars film series and the Indiana Jones films.

Harrison Ford's mother's name was Dora Nidelman. Her mother Anna, Ford's grandmother, left Minsk in 1907. At one time, Ford, with the help of public organizations, was looking for great-great-grandfathers and distant relatives who live in the territory of the former USSR.

Helen Mirren


Helen Mirren is an English actress and Oscar winner. Known for playing the role of Caesonia in the film "Caligula", the performer of the role of the English Queen Charlotte, as well as Elizabeth I and Elizabeth II. In fact, the actress's name is Elena Lidia Vasilievna Mironova. Her grandfather, Pyotr Vasilyevich Mironov, being a convinced monarchist, did not accept the revolution and remained in Great Britain, where he served as a military engineer. After the death of Peter Vasilievich, the father of the actress changed his name to the English version - Basil Mirren.

Michael Douglas


Michael Douglas is an American film actor and producer, winner of two Oscars: in 1976 as a producer of the film One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and in 1988 as an actor for leading role in the movie Wall Street.

The grandfather of Michael Douglas once emigrated from Russia to avoid participation in the Russo-Japanese War. His last name sounded like Danielovich-Demsky, but Michael's father (actor Kirk Douglas) chose to become just Douglas.

Winona Ryder


Winona Ryder is an American film, television actress and producer. She was twice nominated for an Oscar for her roles in the films Age of Innocence and Little Women.

Winona Laura Horowitz is also not her real name, she should be called Winona Tomchina. But when the father's family left Russia, the US immigration services confused their last name with the data of other emigrants: they left Russia as Tomchins, and entered America as Horovits.

Yul Brynner


Yul Brynner, born Yuly Borisovich Briner, is an American theater and film actor, winner of the Oscar for his role as the King of Siam in the film The King and I.

He once stated that he was half Swiss and half Japanese. In fact, he was the son of engineer and inventor Boris Brynner and the daughter of a Russian doctor, Maria Blagovidova. They named him Yul in honor of his paternal grandfather, Julius Brynner.

Steven Seagal


Steven Seagal is an American film actor, producer, screenwriter, and director.

Born in the family of mathematics teacher Samuel Steven Seagal and an administrator at the Patricia clinic. Information about the nationality of the ancestors and the origin of Seagal is contradictory, but the likelihood that the actor's ancestors were Russian is high. So, according to one version, his father's parents - the Jews Nathan Siegelman and Dora Goldstein - came to America from St. Petersburg while still children. Segal himself claims that his paternal grandfather was from the "Buddhist" regions of Russia and is a Mongol, Buryat, or Kalmyk.

Sylvester Stallone


The modest Jewish girl Rosa Rabinovich, who lived in pre-revolutionary Odessa, could not even think that her grandson would become famous. Sylvester Stallone has appeared in more than 50 films, including the Rocky, Rambo and The Expendables series, which he had a hand in creating as a screenwriter, director and producer.

Pamela Anderson


American actress and fashion model Pamela Anderson was born in the town of Ladysmith, her father has Finnish roots, and her mother is Russian (great-grandmother emigrated from Russia to Holland, and from there to Canada).

Robert Downey Jr.


American actor, producer and musician. The star of the films "Sherlock Holmes" and " iron Man". Received two Golden Globes and two Oscar nominations.

Born in the family of Robert Downey Sr., actor, screenwriter and director and actress Elsie Downey. Among the paternal ancestors are Russian Jews, as well as Hungarians and Irish.