Who melted the ice in the heart of actor Alexander Baluev, and why he gave up a career in Hollywood

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Glory came to him late enough, already at the age of 40, but this did not prevent Alexander Baluev from becoming one of the most sought-after and popular actors today. He starred in several films in Hollywood, and then categorically refused to build a career there, although the proposals came with enviable regularity. Alexander Baluev is called the most closed Russian actor, because he carefully hides everything that does not concern creativity. He seems stern and restrained, but one person was able to melt the ice in his heart.

Right choice

Alexander Baluev's mother was a simple engineer, his father was a military man. He dreamed that his son would certainly follow in his footsteps and become an officer. Since childhood, Sasha has been involved in sports and music, but his military career did not attract him at all. From an early age he valued freedom most of all, and he categorically did not like the prospect of devoting his life to fulfilling orders. But he liked the theater, where he often went with his mother. And by the time he graduated, he had already decided finally: he would be an artist.

True, right after school he did not enter the theater, he was cut off during the first round of auditions at the Shchukin school. But after the failure, Alexander did not give up, tripled to work as an assistant illuminator at Mosfilm, and a year later he became a student at the Moscow Art Theater School.

True, after receiving his diploma, he could not get into either Lenkom, Sovremennik, or even the BDT. But the young actor was accepted with open arms at the Theater of the Soviet Army, where he served for six years, where he also underwent military service. However, he did not have the main roles and, tired of waiting, he moved to the Yermolova Theater.

And then a movie appeared in his life. The roles became more and more, he became one of the most demanded actors. He starred in Stanislav Govorukhin's film Bless the Woman, portraying the charming but despotic Alexander Larichev on the screen, played General Koretsky in the film Oligarch, Gerasim in Mu-mu. In total, the actor's filmography includes more than a hundred works, including Hollywood films, where Alexander Baluev was invited with enviable regularity.

True, at some point the actor began to refuse invitations from Hollywood. He had to play too similar characters, which he himself was not interested in. As a result, after several refusals from filming overseas, they forgot about him. But in Russia, he acts in five or six projects a year.

He also left the repertory theater, preferring to play entertaining performances or collaborate with theaters that offered him interesting roles. In 2014, Alexander Baluev acted as an actor, director and producer of the play Territory of Passion. But he prefers not to talk about his passions. Although one of his love stories was beautiful and undoubtedly happy until a certain time.

Tenderness

Alexander Baluev met his first and only wife in Crimea when he was 34 years old. At that time he starred in the role of the King of England in the film "Richard the Lionheart" by Evgeny Gerasimov. Maria Urbanovskaya, a Polish journalist with a brilliant command of the Russian language, enjoyed her vacation on the Crimean coast, walked with her two children along the Koktebel embankment and least of all thought about romantic relationships.

For Alexander Baluev, it was love at first sight. He decided to conquer this woman by all means, despite the age difference (Maria was several years older), the fact that she had two children and the official status of a married lady. True, at the time of her acquaintance with the actor, her marriage had actually fallen apart, it remained only to settle the legal formalities.

At first, the journalist did not take the handsome actor seriously. But he was so persistent and courted so beautifully that she could not resist the pressure of his love. Soon after the end of filming in the Crimea, Maria moved with her children to Moscow to Alexander Baluev.

Love for Maria Urbanovskaya changed the actor a lot. He built a large house in the suburbs, gave up drinking, which he became slightly carried away in recent years. This was the demand of his beloved, and he then submitted. In 2003, Maria gave her husband a daughter, Maria-Anna.

He fell in love with her immediately and forever and became a completely crazy father. In the first six months, he even gave up filming in films in order to be able to spend more time with the baby. Absent only for rehearsals and performances. His relationship with his daughter was touching and even quivering. But the marriage with Maria Urbanovskaya broke up when the baby was only a year old.

The former wife took the children and returned to Poland, but the relationship between father and daughter did not end. At the slightest opportunity, Alexander Baluev flew to Warsaw to be with the main person in his life. He took and is taking part in her upbringing, is proud of Maria's successes. She is already 18 years old, she knows three languages, she has acted in films with her father twice: once in a Russian TV series, the other in the Polish film "Photographer".

Currently, Maria is studying at a film school, studying acting, directing and cinematography. According to Alexander Baluev, he did not influence the choice of his daughter in any way, she herself wanted to connect her life with cinema.

The actor felt incredible happiness when he saw the one-minute film "Parting", directed by Maria. He was delighted that his daughter is not an empty person, she is an intelligent, talented and sensitive girl. And yet - amazingly beautiful. According to Alexander Baluev, the success of his daughter pleases him much more than his own.

The actor is saddened by the impossibility of seeing Maria as often as he would like. Previously, he could get on a plane at any time and hug his girl in a couple of hours. Now, due to the pandemic, he is forced to be content with only video communication.

Alexander Baluev, a strong and very reserved person, completely changes when it comes to his daughter. Eyes warm, and soft notes appear in the voice. He still cannot get used to the fact that he is constantly separated from the main person in his life. He is very bored and sincerely believes: everything will change soon.

Alexander Baluev today is one of the most popular and demanded artists, in whose filmography there are already more than 100 works. But 5 of them turned out to be the brightest in his acting fate, including those where the audience is unlikely to recognize Baluev in makeup.