Palme School

10 Hollywood stars are descendants of immigrants from the Russian Empire

"I want my children to speak Russian so that they don't forget who their grandparents are," parents of our students share. That's what we're going to talk about. We found some famous people living abroad whose families once spoke Russian.

5 female "stars" with a Russian family history

  • Nicole Scherzinger

a member of The Pussycat Dolls and an actress. Her grandmother was from Vladivostok, Russia. From there she went to Hawaii and got married. Her grandmother calls her granddaughter Praskovia.

  • Helen Mirren

British actress. Her father was the son of a Russian officer who emigrated to Britain during the Revolution. In the new country, the Mironovs changed their surname to Mirren, in the English manner.

  • Gwyneth Paltrow

American actress. Her great-grandfather lived in Nizhny Novgorod and her grandfather lived in Minsk. The family spoke Russian and had the surname Paltrovich. When moving to the United States, they changed it to Paltrow.

  • Winona Ryder

American actress. Her maternal grandparents moved to the United States in 1906 from Minsk. Her grandmother lived for over 100 years and told her granddaughter a lot about her Russian roots.

  • Lisa Kudrow

American actress. Her paternal grandmother lived in the Minsk region and moved to the United States in 1921. Lisa made a movie about celebrities exploring their roots and visited her grandmother's birthplace in Belarus.

5 Hollywood stars - men with Russian roots

They no longer speak Russian, but their childhood was marked by Russian speech at home. They attribute their hardness of character and will to succeed to their Slavic roots.

Let's continue to get acquainted with foreign stars whose families were once connected with Russia.

  • Steven Spielberg

American film director. Both families of the director's parents on his mother's and father's side were Jewish immigrants from the Russian Empire. They left for the United States in 1906. His parents were born already in the United States, but in their house they spoke Russian and loved Russian cuisine.

  • Harrison Ford

American movie actor. The actor's grandparents were both born in the Russian Empire. Emigrated to the United States in 1906-1907, where they met and had a mother Harrison, who was named after his maternal grandfather. The actor has been to Russia and starred in a movie about the Soviet submarine K-19.

  • Sylvester Stallone

American actor. His maternal grandmother lived in Odessa before the revolution, after which she emigrated to France and then to the United States. Sylvester's mother sought out her grandmother's roots during the Soviet era and involved the of Secretary General Mikhail Gorbachev..

  • Michael Douglas

American actor. Douglas is an adapted form of the family surname Danielovich-Demsky. The surname was carried by his Russian grandfather, who emigrated to the United States in 1904 to avoid mobilization in the Russo-Japanese War. The shortened surname was invented by Michael's father Kirk Douglas when he started his movie career.

  • Robert Downey Jr.

American actor. His grandparents emigrated from Lithuania in the late 19th century, when the state was part of the Russian Empire. When visiting Moscow to present the movie "The Avengers", the actor even prepared a speech in Russian.

In conclusion

Our blog has many articles about Russian culture and celebrities who have contributed to its development. If you are interested, read our articles:

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Submit a request for a free first session with a guidance counselor to get to know each other, determine your goals, and match your child with an educator
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Submit a request for a free first session with a guidance counselor to get to know each other, determine your goals, and match your child with an educator
Sign up for a free lesson
Submit a request for a free first session with a guidance counselor to get to know each other, determine your goals, and match your child with an educator
Sign up for a free lesson
Submit a request for a free first session with a guidance counselor to get to know each other, determine your goals, and match your child with an educator
Sign up for a free lesson
Submit a request for a free first session with a guidance counselor to get to know each other, determine your goals, and match your child with an educator
Sign up for a free lesson
Submit a request for a free first session with a guidance counselor to get to know each other, determine your goals, and match your child with an educator
Sign up for a free lesson
Submit a request for a free first session with a guidance counselor to get to know each other, determine your goals, and match your child with an educator