Childhood and youth
Alexey Evgenievich Kravchenko was born in October 1969 in the Moscow region. The son was raised by his mother; his parents divorced when the boy was still a child. During his school years, he became interested in music and graduated from the jazz studio at the Moskvorechye Cultural Center. Together with his rock band, the guy performed in front of his peers and achieved some success. The future artist also paid attention to physical training, so he took up bodybuilding early.
Alexey Kravchenko in the film “Come and See”
Lesha didn’t think about cinema, but at the age of 15 he starred in Elem Klimov’s war film “Come and See.” Kravchenko later learned that the casting had been going on for several years; thousands of boys from all over the Soviet Union had auditioned for the role of Fleura, including young Yevgeny Mironov. The release of the film in 1985 was timed to coincide with the 40th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War. Almost 30 million people watched the film in cinemas.
According to the actor, to fit the image, he went on a strict diet. The filming process lasted 9 months, 6 of which, due to the director’s ban, he did not see his mother. The film received 6 different awards, including at international festivals, the creator of the film received the USSR State Prize. But the young hero of the drama was not included in the list of laureates because he was a minor.
Filming was actually very difficult, because at that time there were no computer special effects. For one of the scenes, a cow was killed; the animal, beating in agony, almost fell on the boy - according to the script, he crawled to the animal and lay next to her while she died. The little actor's stress was relieved by riding on a tank.
The film was so psychologically difficult that after the premiere there were rumors that director Elem Klimov hanged himself, and the leading actor spent 3 years in a psychiatric hospital. Later at the performances, the audience was always interested in Kravchenko’s well-being after treatment. Alexey treated this with humor and always answered: “Not bad. You see, I don’t rush at you, I don’t bite.”
Due to filming, the student fell far behind the program; even tutors did not help. Therefore, after 8 classes, Kravchenko entered a vocational school to become a milling machine operator, worked at a factory, erected roofs on new buildings, and served in the Navy in Vladivostok.
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Alexey Kravchenko in his youth with his colleagues
In the army, he created a musical group - with the “blessing” of his superiors, the group performed at all holidays and went with concerts to collective farms from Vladivostok to the Pacific, earning money and food for the military unit. Alexey left the fleet with the rank of chief petty officer and almost stayed to study as a midshipman.
Upon returning home, Elem Klimov persuaded Kravchenko to enter drama school. The guy chose Shchukinskoye and entered without difficulty. In Alla Kazanskaya’s course, Alexey was among the best students: in 1995, the young artist graduated from the walls of “Pike” with honors.
Alexey was born on October 10, 1969 in Moscow. His father left the family early, so the future actor was raised by his mother. The absence of a man's hand affected Alexey's childhood - already in the first grade he started smoking. However, he later came to his senses and in high school became interested in bodybuilding. In the future, his athletic figure gave him the opportunity to easily fit into the images of muscular movie characters. Already at the age of 16, while still a schoolboy, Alexey passed the casting and received the main role in the now legendary Soviet drama “Come and See” (1985). Surprisingly, an ordinary Moscow schoolboy managed to play 16-year-old Flera Gaishun, who went through fascist hell. Kravchenko managed to embody on the screen the boy’s pain, his suffering, and the transformation of his hero from a carefree youth into an “old man” broken by the war. However, after this outstanding debut, Alexey left cinema for ten years. First he graduated from a vocational school, and then served in the Navy for three years. In Vladivostok he rose to the rank of chief naval foreman.
Returning to the capital, 22-year-old Alexey entered the Shchukin Higher Theater School. These were the troubled nineties, when the profession of an actor seemed unattractive - creative people could barely make ends meet. But Alexey stood his ground - he wanted to get an acting education at all costs. Three years later he was accepted into the E. Vakhtangov Theater. At the same time as working in the theater, Kravchenko is trying to act in films, however, due to the crisis in cinema, there are not many offers. In 1995, he appeared in Nikolai Dostal’s film “The Little Demon”, then in 1999 – in Alexander Surin’s drama “Flowers from the Winners” and Denis Evstigneev’s drama “Mama”. With the beginning of the 2000s and the serial boom in Russia, Alexey Kravchenko becomes the hero of numerous projects. His image of a strong man who kills all enemies in his path comes in handy in almost every series: “Brigade” (2002), “Special Forces” (2002), “Death of an Empire” (2005). Particularly popular are the series “Spetsnaz” (2002) and its sequel “Spetsnaz 2” (2003), where he played the role of Captain Vladimir Vyazemsky, working in the GRU special forces.
In 2001, the actor changed theaters - for a whole year he shone on the stage of the Theater. A. S. Pushkin. Then, after a long theatrical break (in 2007), he settled on the Moscow Art Theater. A.P. Chekhov.
Despite the fact that the mass audience learned about Kravchenko thanks to the image of a fair strongman, the actor wanted to show his dramatic potential, which, undoubtedly, was considerable (after all, his childhood role was very strong). In 2002, he played Sergeant Anikanov in the film “Star”. In 2008, he played the role of Fyodor Mukhin in Vladimir Kott’s drama “The Fly,” where he played a truck driver forced to establish relationships with his difficult teenage daughter after the death of his beloved. In 2007, 38-year-old Alexey Kravchenko was awarded the honorary title “Honored Artist of Russia.” He also holds the State Prize in Literature and Art for his role in the film “Star” (2003) and the “Seagull” Award (2007) for his work in the play “The Pillowman.”
Theater
It cannot be said that Alexei’s creative biography developed easily and rapidly. At the Yevgeny Vakhtangov Theater, where the actor served after the Shchukin School, he was trusted only with episodic roles. The artist could not cope with theatrical intrigues and left the troupe in 2001.
But the actor did not leave the stage - at first he worked as a guest artist at the Anton Chekhov Moscow Art Theater, and in 2007 he finally joined the team. The second “theatrical run” was successful.
Here the artist was finally entrusted with notable characters, including Brown from Bertolt Brecht’s “The Threepenny Opera”, Boris Semenovich Gus-Remontny from Mikhail Bulgakov’s “Zoyka’s Apartment”, Ivan Karamazov from “The Karamazovs” based on the work of Fyodor Dostoevsky.
Students and theater
Having received secondary education, the guy entered college, where he mastered the profession of a milling machine operator. Then in his life there was:
- work in a factory;
- construction of roofs of new buildings;
- years of the army in Vladivostok.
Alexey served in the navy, where he became a ship's foreman and even almost stayed to study to receive the rank of midshipman.
When Kravchenko returned home in 1991, Edem Klimov persuaded him to get a theater education. The young man decided to try out for the Shchukin School and was enrolled in Alla Kazanskaya’s course. He was one of the best in his class and five years later he received a diploma with honors.
The creative career of Alexey Kravchenko cannot be called easy and rapid. At the theater. Vakhtangov, where he was assigned after college, the artist was involved in minor roles. He himself complained that in 7 years of work in the theater he had only one main role with the words “The potatoes are ready!” Of course, this is irony, Alexey participated not only in the crowd, he has four roles in various performances:
- Clarin from the production “Life is a Dream”.
- Stepan from the comedy “Chasing Two Hares.”
- Just from Amphitryon.
- Valver in Cyrano de Bergerac.
But still, the actor was not able to fully open up, so in 2001 he left the theater.
Kravchenko returned to the theater stage 6 years later. He began to try his hand at the Moscow Art Theater. Chekhov and this attempt was successful. According to the artist, he immediately joined the team and received the “blessing” of the main director Kirill Serebrennikov. Here Alexey played interesting key characters:
- in “The Threepenny Opera” (B. Brecht) - Brown;
- in “Zoyka’s Apartment” (M. Bulgakov) - Boris Semyonovich Gus-Remontny;
- in “The Karamazovs” (F. Dostoevsky) - Ivan Karamazov.
And for his role in the production of “The Pillowman,” Kravchenko was awarded several theater awards.
Movies
Alexey came to cinema during a difficult period, which is called “little pictures”. In the mid-90s, the actor starred in episodes of a number of films that were not noted for special audience attention. But in the early 2000s the situation changed.
The dominance of TV series, the fashion for which blossomed wildly in the 2000s, did not bypass Kravchenko. The actor’s height (180 cm with a weight of 85 kg) and texture - bodybuilding was not in vain - almost made him a hostage to one role: a “cool” hero (warrior, special forces soldier), who easily eliminates enemies with strong hands.
Alexey Kravchenko in the TV series “Brigade”
Although among these militants there were also high-quality ones, which Kravchenko himself considers worthy works. First of all, this is the series “Special Forces”, where a real constellation of bright actors has gathered: Vladislav Galkin, Alexander Baluev, Mikhail Porechenkov, Igor Lifanov, Vladimir Turchinsky.
Alexey also appeared in another cult series, “Brigada”. It is noteworthy that the artist refused to embody one of the main characters - Phil, and agreed to play a supporting role - FSB employee Vvedensky.
By the end of the 2000s, the actor’s repertoire was replenished with the projects “Fly”, “Defense”, “Bros”, where Kravchenko invariably ended up in the main cast. In 2010, the artist reincarnated as the hero of the historical drama “Yaroslav. A thousand years ago,” where he played the medieval pagan warrior Harald.
In addition to the acting profession, in his youth Alexey tried himself as a TV presenter of the program “Psychics vs. Detectives,” which was broadcast on the NTV channel in 2016.
2019 was marked by the appearance in Alexey’s repertoire of the sports drama “Lev Yashin. The goalkeeper of my dreams." The premiere of the film is timed to coincide with the 90th anniversary of the birth of the great football player Lev Yashin. Kravchenko played the role of Dynamo goalkeeper Alexei Khomich in the biopic, a man with a difficult fate. The actor last played football as a child, and is not a fan of this sport at all, so to prepare for the role he trained with a professional goalkeeper.
Alexey Kravchenko in the film “Lev Yashin. Goalkeeper of my dreams"
Another project of the year is the international war film “The Painted Bird,” in which Kravchenko appeared on the same screen with Harvey Keitel and Stellan Skarsgård.
According to the artist, when choosing a script, he focuses primarily on interesting material. Therefore, Alexey agreed to play in the film “The Heart of Parma”, where he received the role of the leader of an army of robbers. On the set of this film, he had to overcome physical difficulties - wearing a 15-kilogram suit and at the same time riding a horse.
In 2020, the actor’s filmography added the thriller “Deadly Illusions,” which also starred Andrei Burkovsky, Pavel Chinarev, Aglaya Tarasova, etc. This project is notable not only for its intense plot, but also for a large number of dizzying numbers, staged by the showmen the Safronov brothers .
Personal life
The actor met his first wife Alice while serving in the army. The young people corresponded for a long time, after which they decided to start a family. Alisa was among those people who influenced Kravchenko’s decision to enter a theater university.
The family - the couple lived together for 18 years - had 2 children. The eldest of them, his father’s namesake, Alexey, at the age of 3, together with his parent, starred in the film “The Christmas Mystery.” The parents named the youngest boy Matvey.
Alexey Kravchenko with his first wife Alisa and children / StarLife
Over time, the relationship between Alice and Alexei cooled. During such a difficult period, Kravchenko met his colleague Nadezhda Borisova. They met on the stage of a performance. Nadezhda is the daughter of artist Lev Borisov.
Now the main role in Kravchenko’s personal life is played by Nadya, with whom the actor tries not to be separated for a minute, as well as his sons and Ksenia, Nadezhda’s daughter from her first marriage to actor Boris Mironov. The lovers were not married, but they got married in a church.
The artist has an official page on the Instagram social network, where Alexey regularly posts photos demonstrating his impeccable physical shape. Here subscribers will learn about the latest news from the actor’s creative life.
Alexey Kravchenko now
Now the artist’s theatrical repertoire includes the performances “The Pillowman”, “An Ideal Husband. Comedy" - for his roles in these productions, Kravchenko became a laureate of the Oleg Tabakov Prize.
In 2021, the war drama “Come and See” was released again. The 1985 film underwent digital restoration at the Mosfilm film concern. Back in September 2017, this version, presented at the 74th Venice Film Festival, won the prize for best restored film.
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Alexey Kravchenko and Nadezhda Borisova
On May 5, the actor took part in the VI gala concert of the public patriotic event “Thank you for your loyalty, descendants!” at Crocus City Hall. Since 2013, this annual event on the eve of the Great Victory Day has become a creative preface to the procession of the “Immortal Regiment” on May 9. The concert program included performances by Alexander Buinov, Valeria, Oleg Gazmanov, Tamara Gverdtsiteli, etc.
Son of Alexey Kravchenko - Alexey Kravchenko
Our hero became a father for the first time in early 1993. The wife named the baby in honor of the newly-made father - Alyosha.
During his school years, the guy studied well, was involved in music and sports. From a young age, he dreamed of connecting his life with cooking. The guy was a good cook. He often spoiled his parents and friends with homemade cakes.
The son of Alexey Kravchenko, Alexey Kravchenko, was educated at one of the capital’s technical schools. He got a job at an elite restaurant, where he amazes visitors with his culinary skills.
In one of his last interviews, the film actor said that his eldest son would soon get married. The wedding will take place in early March next year.
