Childhood
Vasily Stepanov grew up in a simple family in Moscow, his father was a policeman, and his mother was a salesman. Vasya was not the only child in the family; he has a younger brother, Maxim. According to Vasily, he grew up as a difficult teenager and never excelled in his studies.
Vasily Stepanov in childhood
After graduating from school, Stepanov decided to become a physical education teacher and continued his education at a local vocational technical school and during his studies even became a master of sports in hand-to-hand combat. But the guy got bored with the monotonous training very quickly. After graduating in 2006, Stepanov decided to try his hand at law and entered the relevant faculty. Soon there was disappointment in his chosen profession, and the guy took the documents.
Vasily Stepanov in his school years
Over time, Vasya began working as a bartender and at the same time starred in several commercials. In one of the videos, he encouraged young people to join contract service, although he himself had never served in the army. After several successful filming, friends convinced Vasily to enter a theater university. In 2007, Stepanov entered the Shchukin School, where Vladimir Poglazov became his mentor.
Talent
Stepanov’s studies at school were not going very well, so after receiving secondary education, the future artist entered the School of Physical Culture and Sports. There Vasily received the specialty of a physical education teacher.
But very soon the guy wanted to change his life and move away from sports. Stepanov entered the law school. Despite his desire to obtain a law degree, he was expelled due to regular absenteeism.
In order to compensate for his failures, the future artist got a job as a bartender and starred in commercials. His friends saw talent in him, so they persuaded the young man to try his hand at entering VGIK. Stepanov tried to enroll in several theater institutes, but as a result he chose the Shchukin School.
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Actor career
While still a student at the Shchukin School, Vasily decided to try his hand at cinema and went to the casting of the future blockbuster “Inhabited Island”. The project manager, Pavel Kaplevich, who selected the actors, noticed Stepanov’s talent and introduced him to Fyodor Bondarchuk.
On the set of the blockbuster "Inhabited Island"
The famous director was fascinated by the appearance of the young man. For the role of the traveler from other worlds Maxim Kammerer, he was looking for just such an actor - tall, stately, with bottomless eyes.
Vasily Stepanov as Maxim Kammerer
Stepanov’s candidacy was even approved by Boris Strugatsky himself, co-author of the story “Inhabited Island”:
To star in Bondarchuk’s blockbuster, Stepanov had to take a leave of absence from school, tighten up his fitness, and highlight his hair. But any trials were worth it - he was lucky enough to work on the same set with such actors as Sergei Garmash, Pyotr Fedorov and Yulia Snigir, and the day after the premiere of the film on January 1, 2009, the actor woke up famous. The main glossy publications invited him for photo shoots and interviews, the paparazzi tried to find out about his personal life, and fans went crazy over his blue eyes and Apollo figure.
Pyotr Fedorov, Yulia Snigir, Vasily Stepanov and Fyodor Bondarchuk
However, no matter how hard Vasily tried, Bondarchuk was dissatisfied with the result of the joint work:
Due to the actor’s poor diction—Stepanov always burred heavily—he had to be re-voiced by Maxim Matveev. According to Vasily himself, Gosha Kutsenko helped him somehow correct his pronunciation on the set.
Sergey Garmash, Gosha Kutsenko and Vasily Stepanov in the film “Inhabited Island”
Critics had mixed reactions to Stepanov's performance: many spoke of the handsome young man's acting talents with caustic sarcasm, but some even noted that the debutant coped with his role better than many famous artists in this blockbuster. The high-budget film with a lot of special effects and action scenes received extremely negative reviews from critics and viewers who read the Strugatsky novel. However, as of 2009, “The Inhabited Island” became the most successful Russian film at the box office, grossing $21.8 million.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bb9cYMaHQuY
Despite all the negative reviews, in 2009 the film’s sequel, “Inhabited Island: Heat,” was released. Bondarchuk did not change Stepanov for another actor, but remained as tough as ever: “He played so poorly that we had to edit scenes from different takes,” he said after the release.
Vasily Stepanov in the film “My Boyfriend is an Angel”
In 2011, the actor got a far from leading role in the comedy “My Boyfriend is an Angel,” where Arthur Smolyaninov and Ivan Okhlobystin played.
Vasily Stepanov on the TV show “Long time no see”
That same year, I decided to try my hand at a new industry and went to the casting for presenters. Soon he began hosting the show “Long time no see” on the TV Center channel. But after several graduations, Stepanov was removed from his position.
Vasily Stepanov in the film “Insured Event”
Also in 2011, Vasily played one of the main roles in the detective melodrama “Insured Event”. The last work this year was a minor role in the television series “The Kiss of Socrates.”
Vasily Stepanov in the production of “Veronica Decides to Die”
At that time, Vasily Stepanov could also be found on the theater stage. Among the most important works of the talented actor, the audience remembered his performance as the schizophrenic Edward in the Yuri Vasiliev Theater production of “Veronica Decides to Die.”
In 2013, Stepanov played an announcer in the crime drama “Okolofutbola”. After that, he disappeared from view for a long time, declaring that he would no longer act in films. After 2 years, he finally came out of the shadows and said: “I didn’t have a permanent job, so I had to be content with small orders. Because of this, I have big problems, since it is very difficult at this age to sit on my parents’ necks.”
Finally, in 2021, the actor was noticed on the set of the film “Tank Men,” which also starred Roman Madyanov and Vladimir Epifantsev. But some kind of evil fate again intervened in Stepanov’s life - right on New Year’s Eve 2021, Vasily could not keep his balance while climbing the stairs, which is why he broke his hip bone and several vertebrae.
Vasily Stepanov in the hospital
The main personality in his destiny
At a screen test, the young man met Pavel Kaplevich. He led the casting of artists for the film “Inhabited Island”. Noticing talent in the young man, he made an appointment for Vasily with Fyodor Bondarchuk. The film director appreciated the appearance of the young man: stately and handsome, he suited the role of the main character in the film by Maxim Kammerer.
The actor took a sabbatical leave to participate in filming. The film "Inhabited Island" made him popular almost overnight. True, for the picture the guy had to dye his hair, and then the blonde became the dream of many representatives of the fair half.
In addition, Stepanov tried his hand as a TV presenter. So, ten years ago Vasily hosted a program called “Long time no see” on TV Center. But the artist managed to appear in only a few programs, after which he ended his career.
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Twelve years ago, Stepanov took part in a photo shoot for the cover of the book “Attraction.” Olga Golovina kept him company. Their photos very soon appeared on posters, as well as in promotional videos for Elena Usacheva’s book, and fans started talking about preparations for creating a film similar to the American “Twilight”.
Personal life of Vasily Stepanov
Vasily's first and serious love was the attractive actress Daria Egorova. The young people met while studying at the Shchukin School. They lived together for some time, but then the girl realized: “He is standing still, while I want to move on.” After parting, they remained good friends.
Vasily Stepanov and Daria Egorova
It would seem that everything should have been the other way around, but after filming “The Inhabited Island,” an endless black streak came in the life of the young actor. Fame turned Stepanov’s head so much that he simply refused to accept the subsequent refusals and failures and gradually gave up. Eternal problems with money and illness were added to depression.
First, Stepanov suffered a blood clot on his left leg, then serious problems with his spine began. The ensuing troubles finally broke the spirit of the star that had barely risen into the sky. In a matter of years, Vasily Stepanov has changed almost beyond recognition - his face has become haggard and aged, his eyes have faded. It was already difficult to recognize him as the attractive handsome man that everyone remembered him as from The Inhabited Island.
Vasily Stepanov now
Stepanov blamed Fyodor Bondarchuk for his failures, calling him an ordinary music video director, not a director. Resigned to the fate of a loser, Vasya settled in a small apartment with his parents. If you believe the words of the ex-fiancée: “Vasya is depressed because he still can’t believe that his acting career ended in failure.”
On April 12, 2021, another misfortune happened to the once famous actor: he fell from the window of his own apartment, located on the fifth floor. After the tragic event, Stepanov was temporarily placed in a psychiatric hospital, but he denied the suicide attempt - according to him, he tried to save a cat climbing along the ledge, but lost his balance.
Vasily Stepanov now. Still from the film “Who's Next, Dreamers?”
In 2017-2018, Vasily Stepanov starred in the film “Who’s Next, Dreamers?” from director Natalia Verevkina. His brother Maxim also appeared in the film - he and Vasily play two entrepreneurs. Funds for filming the film were raised through crowdfunding.
