Today we offer a closer acquaintance with the outstanding Russian athlete and actor Oleg Taktarov. He began his career as a fighter of mixed martial arts. Today, he is a popular actor both in America and beyond. We offer a closer acquaintance with our compatriot who managed to conquer Hollywood, learn about the details of his career and personal life.
Oleg Taktarov: photo, biography
The future star of the fighting ring and large screens was born on August 26, 1967 in the Russian city of Sarov (formerly Arzamas-16), located in the Nizhny Novgorod region. His parents were military personnel. Little Oleg learned to read very early and by the age of eight had studied almost all the books he could find in the house. He especially liked travel stories.
When the boy was 10 years old, his father, a former professional boxer, gave his son to a local sports school specializing in sambo and judo. His coach was Vitaly Karlovich Mikhailov, who quickly noticed great abilities in Oleg. Once he told the boy that he saw in him the future world champion, which eventually became a reality. Therefore, despite the fact that Oleg from childhood wanted to become an actor, he decided to diligently engage in sports.
In 1990, he became a master of sports of the USSR in judo. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Oleg, like many compatriots, took up running his own business. Later, he even wrote about this experience in his own book, entitled Victory at Any Cost.
Career fighter
In 1993, Oleg, a stubborn sportsman, decided to take part in the Golden Dragon tournament held in Riga. To his surprise, Taktarov became the winner. This inspired him to participate in other similar tournaments, which allowed him to save money and move to the USA, where he dreamed of realizing himself as an actor. However, for several years he had to be in the role of a fighter again, speaking at prestigious championships.
Oleg Taktarov: filmography, the beginning of an acting career
After numerous trials and auditions in 1999, “Russian Bear” finally gets its first serious role in the movie. It was a picture of “Fifteen Minutes of Glory”. And so began the acting career of Oleg, about which he had dreamed since childhood.
In 2001, he decided to say goodbye to big sport and devote himself completely to cinema. Over the next few years, films such as Oleg Taktarov’s Love Adventure of My Friend (2001), Let's Do It Together (2001), Rollerball (2002), Red Snake (2002), 44 Minutes (2003), Bad Boys 2 (2003), and Sins of the Fathers (2004). During this time, he had the opportunity to work on the same set with such Hollywood stars of the first magnitude as Robert de Niro, Jean Reno, Al Pacino, Nicolas Cage, Robert Duval and others.
In 2005, the actor has long been in Namibia. There were filming a film about African shamans called "Treasures of the nation." While working on the project, Oleg, together with colleagues and other employees, was in a critical situation, which almost turned into a real tragedy.
So, the film crew got stuck in the desert without food and water for almost two weeks! As a result, when the film was edited, it turned out that Taktarov appeared on the screen in just a few minutes. This very disappointed Oleg, taking into account all the hardships and difficulties that he had to endure during the filming. In the end, he decides to try his luck at home.
Work in Russian cinema
At home, the career of a famous fighter and actor quickly went uphill. His first work in the film “Hunt for the Manchurian deer”, in which he played the role of Vitka Kamaz, brought Oleg success and recognition from Russian viewers. In 2008, the premiere of a film of domestic production entitled “Montana” took place, where Taktarov brilliantly played the main role.
In addition, Oleg took part in the work on several films of Russian production, including “Melee”, “Afghan”, “Male season” and others.
The picture of the Kazakhstani director Erken Yalgashayev entitled "Melee", shot in 2007, brought together both domestic celebrities and representatives of Hollywood, among which are Eric Roberts, David Carradine, Gary Busey, Kung Le, Olivier Gruner. Actor Oleg Taktarov also took part in the work on the project. Despite the strong cast, the film was shown only at closed screenings and did not go on mass rental.
However, the “Russian bear” did not forget about Hollywood, regularly appearing on the big screen in American-made paintings. So, he played one of the central roles in the acclaimed film "Predators." Also, the actor’s magnificent game can be traced in such films as “The Masters of the Night”, “Life and Death of Bobby Zee”, as well as in the series “Miami Police. Department of manners. "
Last works
Among the actor’s recent works, several very successful Russian projects can be distinguished, such as “Ticket to Vegas”, “Generation P”, “Wii” and “Courier from Paradise”. Taktarov also continues to very successfully combine roles in domestic films with participation in Hollywood films. In addition, in the near future it is expected to be released on screens of as many as six films with Oleg. In one of them, he will play a major role.
Personal life
Oleg Taktarov, whose filmography, as well as the fighting achievements, is quite impressive, on the love front, however, did not achieve much success. He was married three times, and all his marriages, unfortunately, ended in divorce.
The first wife of the “Russian bear” was a girl named Milena. Their marriage lasted five years, during which the first son of Oleg, who was named Sergey, was born.
With his future second wife - Kathleen - Taktarov met after an insulting defeat in the fighting arena. Oleg then became depressed, and the girl framed a friendly shoulder. Over time, their relationship grew into something more, and the lovers decided to get married. Kathleen gave birth to Oleg a son, who was given the name Keaton.
The third legal wife of Taktarov was Russian Maria. However, this marriage broke up a few years later. It turned out that Oleg throughout the whole time did not particularly value family life, always putting his career first.