He is a dragon actors Matvey Lykov. Matvey Lykov: “My father taught me a lot

Each project of Timur Bekmambetov is distinguished not only by entertainment and record budgets, but also by a powerful cast. At the same time, the venerable director is betting not only on cinema sharks, but also on unpromoted names. For example, filming in “Night Watch” once made serial actor Konstantin Khabensky an all-Russian star.

This week, filming of another high-budget film began in Bulgaria - the fantasy melodrama “Dragons” based on the novel by famous science fiction writers Sergei and Marina Dyachenko. The plot centers on the forbidden love of a young dragon man and the beautiful princess he kidnapped.

The main roles in the film were played by previously unknown actors in the film community. Bekmambetov’s next discovery was 27-year-old Matvey Lykov, who got the main role. Bloggers, seeing the handsome man with a hypnotic gaze, immediately dubbed him “the new Danila Kozlovsky,” and the number of his fans on social networks is growing every day. The charismatic young man is also compared with another former sex symbol of Russian cinema, Vasily Stepanov, who was once discovered by Fyodor Bondarchuk.

At his age, Matvey managed to conquer the catwalks of New York, Paris, Milan, London and Tokyo, and became the face of advertising campaigns for Gucci, Cerruti, and Jil Sander, which made him one of the most successful male models in the world. Working with Bekmambetov will be his film debut. However, the magical world of cinema is not entirely alien to him: Matvey is the son of the famous actor Alexander Lykov (“Streets of Broken Lanterns”, “The Turkish Gambit”). Among other things, Matvey starred in the music video for the song “I Love You” by musician Woodkid, where he played the role of a Protestant pastor. Filming took place in Iceland and for the sake of the role, he selflessly entered the icy Atlantic Ocean without insurance or walked along the edge of a glacier crevice.

Also, the seductive brunette is fluent in four languages, and therefore experts are already predicting a career for him in the West. The heart of the subject of girls' dreams is already taken: Lykov Jr. is dating model Jessica Sterenos.

“Matvey is an ideal candidate for the role of a dragon man, he has an alien appearance, on the one hand aggressive, on the other – very attractive: as soon as you smile at him, he literally begins to glow from within,” the director explained his choice.

Bekmambetov relies not only on the charm of the young actor, but also on computer graphics, which are developed by the best artists from the director’s team. For the new project, a whole fantasy world will be created on the screen - Timur considers the unusual surroundings to be the highlight of his future film masterpiece.

”, which once glorified his dad, are not interesting to him?

– Matvey, you are an extremely open and sociable person. For some reason, it’s easier to communicate with people who have experience working in the West than with our TV series stars...

– Probably the fact is that I have to interact with representatives of different countries. Like it or not, we simply have to find a common language in one day of filming.

– Were there any cases when this did not work out?

– Everyone has problems, bad moods, illnesses. The wallet was eventually stolen. But I never take other people's emotions to heart. Only work, and nothing more.

– It must be difficult to learn such an attitude?

“There was a turning point in my life when my parents told me: “Matvey, love people.”

Matvey Lykov

– Easier said than done.

“Nevertheless, this advice made me work on myself.

– You know several languages. Which one do you think?

– It depends on the location. In Italy I think in Italian, in France in French. But as a linguist by training, I can say that people think in images. The speed of thought is equal to the speed of light.

– Do you have a talent for languages ​​or do you have a secret method?

– It all started back at school. Since my parents were busy, my sister Katya and I grew up as independent children. After seventh grade, we persuaded our parents to transfer us to a language school. But there the children learned foreign languages ​​from the first grade. We sat with our textbooks all summer, but we caught up with them. I learned Spanish and English at university. And when I started working as a model, French and Italian were added.

Matvey Lykov with his wife

– Did you use the tutorial?

– I mastered the basics of French in two weeks. I dreamed of entering the Sorbonne and chose paid courses for foreigners. But first I had to learn some basic words. A computer program helped me with this. It's really very effective, I recommend it to everyone!

– You started thinking about your own future at the age of 12 and then persistently pursued your goal. Are you a careerist?

- No. In the 90s, our parents worked long and hard to provide for us. I didn’t feel disadvantaged, but I never understood why, for example, there wasn’t a single mailbox in the entrance and there were syringes on the floor. Why don't they paint houses until the plaster falls off? I had something to compare with. My sister and I spent every summer in the Krasnodar region with our grandmother, where the whole family covered up cracks in the walls, painted, watered flowers, laid tiles and repaired the fence. It was normal.

-Where is your home now?

– In Russia, France, Spain, America... Where family and friends are, where they are waiting for me.

– It is well known that models have strict parameters. Do men also have their own 90-60-90?

– Oddly enough, we fit exactly into this size, only instead of 60 we have 85. Contrary to popular belief, models do not limit themselves in anything. There is so much work and it is so intense that you simply don’t have time to eat. During fashion weeks, we move constantly throughout the month. Sometimes I wake up in Paris, work in Rome, and fly to New York or Los Angeles in the evening. I have to change time zones several times a day, and no one cares whether I slept or not. At the same time, I get up at six and go to bed at three in the morning. In between, I rush around to castings: 15 screenings a day, and all in different parts of the city! By the end of the day I’m so tired that I don’t have the strength to finish one single cutlet - I immediately fall asleep. As a rule, models have an asthenic physique and thin bones. So those on a diet are probably those who desperately dream of becoming a model, but the data let them down.

Matvey Lykov with his parents

– What are the reasons for such strict requirements for the figure?

- With the creation of a picture. The focus should not be on the model in a spectacular pose, but on the clothes. Note that no one in the photo looks like an Auschwitz prisoner. But this is an illusion. The camera adds volume and distorts, since at shows photographers stand ten meters from the podium and use zoom. But in the end, everything looks good in the photo.

– Matvey, you immediately found yourself on the fashion Olympus. Are you lucky?

- I've been waiting for this for a year. He started working as a model in New York, posing for magazines. A little later, the agency sent me to Milan. And at one of the castings the unexpected happened - I got stuck! My portfolio was not returned to me, and I sat and was nervous because I was wasting my time and missing out on other opportunities. Eight (!) hours later, the casting director came to me and said: “You can leave, but if you stay, your life will probably change.” I stayed, and eight hours later I received an offer for an exclusive show and became the face of Jil Sander.

– Did you immediately believe in the reality of what was happening?

– I never celebrate ahead of time. By the way, that work was very hard. Every day from seven in the morning until five in the morning the next day, without breaks, I changed my clothes and walked along the catwalk.

- How did you stand it?

“That’s why they called me a robot.” I listened carefully and did everything exactly. In addition, it turned out that I change clothes faster than anyone else - it takes me no more than thirty seconds to completely change my costume - so I have time to show off three outfits instead of two. Because of my ability to work and diligence, customers simply fell in love with me.

– What about intrigues in the fashion industry?

– I was lucky - I immediately got into the highest echelon of the fashion industry, where normal people work. And then, all these stories are echoes of the 80s, when models were as popular as rock stars. At the beginning of the 2000s, fabulous fees left the industry, and with them arrogance. Everyone treats each other with respect.

– You managed to loudly declare yourself in cinema, and now famous directors dream of getting you in their projects. Have you decided to change your field of activity?

– In France, I studied at the directing department. Making moving pictures is something I want to do in the future. But I became an actor by accident. Very famous musician and director Yoann Lemoine– author of the clips Rihanna, Katy Perry, Drake– came to Paris to shoot a video for his group. However, the actor who was supposed to be filming did not arrive for some reason. Then the stylist remembered me. As a result, Yoann invited me to become the main character in all the videos for his music album. That's when he noticed me Timur Bekmambetov, who was looking for an actor to play the main role in the film “He is a Dragon”. In the novella Renata Litvinova“Joseph’s Dreams” I have a small but important role – a Spanish teacher.

Matvey Lykov

– How did your parents react to your acting experiments?

– Mom and dad (Alla Lykova and actor Alexander Lykov. – Ed.) never forbade us or imposed anything on us. They could give advice, but only if we asked them for it. My sister and I were lucky: our parents not only love us, but also respect us.

– Matvey, do you like to cook?

- Yes. True, the wife does it faster and better. I just take out the cutting board, and she’s already setting the table. Jessica, who is half Peruvian and half Swedish, spoiled me with a variety of dishes. And I treat my friends to borscht, cutlets and mashed potatoes.

– They say that foreigners can’t stand borscht...

– Mine is popular in Texas, New York, Los Angeles, Paris, Milan, Brazil, Madrid and Tokyo. By the way, I always serve garlic with borscht and force everyone to eat it. Otherwise, I say, you will not understand what it means to be Russian. But I always forget about vodka.

– Who instilled in you a love for cooking?

- Grandmother. As soon as I started working abroad, I bought her an iPad so that she could teach me how to cook via Skype. If I used to spend more than four hours preparing borscht, now I can do it in two. It could have been faster, but I’m very scrupulous in terms of cleanliness - a clean kitchen that’s washed to a shine is no less important to me than the fragrant smell from the pan.

– Do you buy your own clothes?

- No. I don't like shopping. My wife, a fashion designer, is in charge of selecting the wardrobe. As a rule, our tastes coincide.

– Do you give your wife any advice?

– I try to give her only compliments. It is known that girls do not ask men for their opinion on appearance in order to hear the truth. Therefore, my task is to instantly give the correct answer.

Interviewed by Anna Abakumova

Russian actor, top model. Son of actor Alexander Lykov.

Matvey Lykov. Biography

Matvey Lykov born on April 8, 1987 in Leningrad, in the family of actor Alexander Lykov. Graduated from the Faculty of Foreign Languages ​​of the Russian State Pedagogical University named after A. I. Herzen.

In 2007, he made his debut as a model on the catwalk at New York Fashion Week, at the end of 2008 he entered the top 50 most popular male models in the world, and in 2009 - into the list of the 10 most popular catwalk models. In the same year, he signed an exclusive contract with the Gucci fashion house. Matvey Lykov graduated from the International Film and Television School in Paris.

In 2015, Matvey Lykov starred in the title role ( Arman) in the director's film Indara Dzhendubaeva and producer Timur Bekmambetov “He is a Dragon”. According to Matvey, he was fascinated by the script, which immerses you in a magical world, and which you don’t want to part with: “The meaning of the existence of my hero Armand has long remained a mystery to himself. And it’s all the more interesting to go through the difficult path of finding answers with him.”

In 2016 he played in film almanac about St.Petersburg "Petersburg. Selfie." Matvey starred in Renata Litvinova's short story about Joseph Brodsky.

Matvey is married to fashion designer Jessica. The couple lives in Paris.

Matvey Lykov. Filmography

2016 St. Petersburg. Selfie

2015 He is a dragon

1993 Journey to Happy Arabia

1992 Thomas Becket (film-play)

The premiere of the new Timur Bekmambetov's film "He's a Dragon", in which 28-year-old Matvey Lykov played the main role. For the son of the star of the series “Streets of Broken Lanterns” Alexander Lykov, this role became his film debut. Surely, Matvey will break not a single girl’s heart, but, as it turned out, his heart is already taken.

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Last fall, Matvey married a Spanish girl named Jessica. “Our wedding with Jessica is not a simple legalization of a relationship. We had a dream - to arrange a big and beautiful holiday for ourselves. And we fulfilled this dream. In fact She and I are very similar: her father is Swedish, from the north, her mother is Peruvian, from the south; everything is like in my family, but not in Russia (Matvey’s father is from the Leningrad region, his mother is from the Krasnodar region. - Note, ed.). We are with each other We speak different languages, we both lived in different countries, so we don’t feel any cultural differences,”– Lykov Jr. shared with Hello! magazine.

Judging by Matvey’s Instagram page, he has the most tender feelings for his wife. He regularly publishes touching photos with his wife, to whom he dedicates love messages and writes compliments.

As they wrote Days.Ru, Lykov Jr. collaborated with modeling agencies in New York, Paris, Milan, London and Tokyo. In 2008, the young man entered the Top 50 most popular male models in the world, and a year later - into the list of the ten most sought-after catwalk models in the world. Matvey participated in shows of such world-famous brands as Tom Ford, Versace, Yves Saint Laurent, Louis Vuitton, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Hermes, Kenzo and many others.

Matvey Lykov came to New York after studying - in Russia, the son of a famous serial actor graduated from a pedagogical university with a degree in linguist-teacher. According to Lykov Sr., he did not tell his parents about his difficulties in the USA and achieved everything on his own.

Alexandra Lykova did not leave his fans a single chance. The 28-year-old man, an aspiring actor and successful fashion model, turns out to have a happy family.

In our capital, not long ago, the premiere screening of Timur Bekmambetov’s new film “He is a Dragon” took place, where the role of the main character was played by Matvey Lykov. This was his debut in the world of cinema. It seemed to everyone that the talented actor would break many girls’ hearts. But, as it turned out, his heart has not been free for a long time.

Matvey Lykov married a Spanish woman, Jessica, in the summer of 2014. He said that their wedding was organized not so much with the goal of legitimizing the marriage, but in order to arrange a beautiful holiday for themselves, which they both wanted. The similarities between the spouses do not end with their common dreams. Their parents are from different regions. Jessica's father is Swedish and her mother is Peruvian, and Matvey's father is from the Leningrad region and his mother is from the Krasnodar region. It turns out that the couple's fathers are from the north, and their mothers are from the south. Lykov Jr. noted that he and his wife managed to live in many countries, so they do not feel the difference in cultures and speak different languages.

Judging by Matvey's Instagram account, the actor has very tender feelings for Jessica. He periodically posts touching photos with his beloved, writes her declarations of love and showers her with compliments.

Let us remember that Matvey Lykov previously collaborated with many modeling agencies in Milan, Tokyo, Paris, London and New York. In 2008, the model was included in the ranking of the most popular male models in the whole world, and a year later - in the top ten most popular catwalk models on the planet. Lykov Jr. took part in shows of famous brands, Tom Ford, Yves Saint Laurent, Louis Vuitton, Kenzo, Marc by Marc Jacobs, etc.

Interestingly, the actor came to New York after studying at the Russian Pedagogical University, receiving the specialty of a linguist-teacher. Matvey's father said that his son achieved everything in the United States on his own, without complaining to his parents.

Watch the video of Matvey Lykov visiting Ivan Urgant: