Viktor Petrovich Zhdanov is a Ukrainian theater and film actor.
Place of Birth, Education
He was born on March 3, 1965 in the village of Kiselivka.
He received his education at the Kherson Cultural and Educational School (now the Kherson School of Culture). He studied as a director of amateur theater groups, but did not complete his higher education.
Career
Theatrical career
Zhdanov’s theatrical path began in 1986, when he began working at the regional puppet theater. After 2 years, he moved to the Kherson Music and Drama Theater named after Kulish, where he played for about 8 years. During this time, he played a number of notable roles, including: Bohdan Khmelnytsky in the play “Oh, Moroze-Morozenko”, Quasimodo in the production of “Notre Dame Cathedral”, Athos and Aramis in “The Three Musketeers”, as well as Panas in “The Mercenary”.
In 1997, the actor joined the troupe of the Pushkin State Drama Theater in the Republic of Agie.
Two years later, he returned to the Kherson Music and Drama Theater named after Kulish and worked there for a year.
Since 2000, he has become an artist of the Donetsk Ukrainian Music and Drama Theater, where he played in the performances “Sorochinsky Fair” in the role of Tsybulya, “Dear Friend” – The One Who Is Always Near, “Aeneid” – Turna and Zhares, as well as in the production of “Orgy”, where he embodied the image of the Maecenas.
In 2014, after Russia’s invasion of Donbas, Zhdanov moved to Kyiv. There he joined the troupe of the Drama and Comedy Theater on the left bank of the Dnieper. On stage, he played the role of Pan in the play “Darynka, Grits and the Evil Spirit”, appeared in the image of the Boatswain in the production of “20 Years Without Air”, and also played Youssef Kadyr in the play “Life Ahead”.
Film career
Zhdanov’s film career started in 2015. His debut was the historical television series “The Last Janissary”, the events of which unfold in the Ukrainian village and in Turkey in the twentieth century. After that, the actor played a fisherman in the series “Dog” and embodied the image of Father Vladimir in the melodrama “On the Line of Life”. Subsequently, he appeared in episodic roles in the TV series “When the Past Is Ahead”, “Dog-2”, “Sniffer-3” and “Convoy”.
An important part of his career was his participation in the feature film “Cyborgs. Heroes Don’t Die”, where Zhdanov played the Old Man.
In 2018, the actor got one of the main roles in the feature film “Volcano”, where he played an eccentric host, to whom a translator of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) comes.
A year later, he appeared in the role of Uncle Vasya in Nariman Aliyev’s directorial debut “Home”. According to the plot, the Crimean Tatar Mustafa is trying to bury his eldest son Nazim, who died in the zone of the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO). He wants to do it in Crimea, which at that time was already under Russian occupation. The film was included in the hundred best films according to the Oleksandr Dovzhenko National Center.
Also notable works in Zhdanov’s career were the historical films “Black Raven” and “Zakhar Berkut”. The first film tells about a former officer of the Ukrainian People’s Republic (UNR) who resists the Red Army. The second film is dedicated to the struggle of the inhabitants of the Carpathians against the Mongol horde.
Since 2020, the actor starred in the series “Catch Kaidash”, where he played one of the main characters – auto mechanic Omelko Kaydash.
In particular, another work in Zhdanov’s career is the historical television series “There Will Be People”. The project focuses on the life of the Ukrainian village in the twentieth century and raises the themes of the Holodomor, the dekulakization of peasants, and the repressions carried out by the Soviet authorities. In the series, the actor played an elderly peasant.
In addition, Zhdanov starred in the television series “Saga”, “Serfdom. Longed-for Love”, “The Last Day of the War”, as well as in the films “I Work at the Cemetery”, “Why I Am Alive” and “God Forgive”.
Marital Status
Zhdanov was married to actress Elena Khokhlatkina for many years. The couple worked together at the Donetsk Ukrainian Music and Drama Theater until 2014, after which they moved to Kyiv. They have two children: daughter Oksana and son Peter. Oksana decided to continue the family tradition and chose the acting profession. Petro studied to be a cameraman at the Kyiv University of Culture.
In 2022, the actor said that shortly after moving to the capital, he and his wife broke up.
