Dimitri Diatchenko
Dimitri Diatchenko (April 11, 1968 – April 21, 2020) was an American actor, voice actor, and musician.
Dimitri Diatchenko | |
|---|---|
 Diatchenko at the premiere of True Blood Season 5 in 2012 | |
| Born | April 11, 1968 San Francisco, California, U.S. |
| Died | April 21, 2020 (aged 52) Daytona Beach, Florida, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1997–2017 |
Life and career
Diatchenko was a native of San Francisco. California, and a first-generation American; his father is Ukrainian and his mother was of Greek and Swedish descent.[1] Diatchenko began classical guitar lessons at the age of seven. Two years later he gave his first solo classical guitar recital. During and after his studies, Dimitri Diatchenko has won several medals in guitar competitions like the Stotsenberg International Classical Guitar Competition or the World Championships of Performing Arts.[2][3] Furthermore, he released four solo guitar CDs.[4]
Diatchenko started studying martial arts at the age of 7. He had black belts in both Tae Kwon Do and Kenpo Karate and studied boxing and arnis. During the early 1990s Dimitri Diatchenko competed as a heavyweight in several national championships, winning many medals in full contact fighting, including the US Olympic Festival, the WTF National Championships and The 1991 World Invitational in Miami, Florida.
Diatchenko attended Newton North High School in Newton, Massachusetts and later Stetson University in DeLand, Florida. There he was a scholarship music student, majored in classical guitar and received the Bachelor of Music. After transferring to Florida State University in Tallahassee, Dimitri Diatchenko continued with his acting and music studies in the Masters program.[5] In April 1996, as Dimitri Diatchenko was graduating with his Master of Music degree from Florida State University, he was cast in Ridley Scott's 1997 action film G.I. Jane and landed a small role as trainee; following this, Dimitri Diatchenko relocated to Los Angeles to pursue his acting career further. In Los Angeles, he also taught guitar privately and performed regularly as a soloist and ensemble player.
Dimitri Diatchenko's acting career began in the late 1990s, as he made appearances on several television series during this time. After appearing on the action television series Alias, some of his most well-known roles to date came in 2008, as he appeared in the films Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and Get Smart.
For his performance as Ukrainian tour guide Yuri in the film Chernobyl Diaries, Diatchenko received good reviews from some film critics.[6][7][8]
In addition to acting, Diatchenko worked as voice actor. He lent his voice to a lot of video and computer games. His first work in a video game came in 2005, as he provided additional voices for Medal of Honor: European Assault.
Controversy
In 2015, Diatchenko plead guilty to animal cruelty after allegedly cooking and eating his ex-girlfriend's female rabbit "Miss. Ella". He was ordered to perform 60 days of community labor and undergo 48 hours of counselling. According to CNN, the murder was possibly imitated since the actor had bought and killed similar anonymous (allegedly nameless) rabbit from a pet shop after the quarrel. Since the act had been pre-mediated, the actor plead guilty to the rabbit murder.[9][10][11]
Death
Diatchenko died in his home in Daytona Beach, Florida, on April 21, 2020, ten days after his 52nd birthday. He was discovered two days later following a wellness check by relatives, concerned they had not seen Diatchenko in days.[12] According to Diatchenko's agent, the death appeared to be a heart attack or complications from an electric shock Diatchenko had sustained while working a week before his death.[13]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Goiterboy | Richter | Short |
| G.I. Jane | Trainee | ||
| 1999 | The Settlement | Uncredited | |
| 2001 | Norman J. Lloyd | Norman J. Lloyd | Short |
| 2006 | The Genius Club | Jesse The Mechanic | |
| Miriam | Alexi | ||
| Love Made Easy | Poker Player | ||
| 2007 | The Longest Yard Sale | Grammy | |
| 2008 | Remarkable Power | Ivan | |
| Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull | Russian Suit 1 | ||
| Get Smart | Russian Underling | ||
| 2010 | Burning Palms | Bob | |
| 2012 | Chernobyl Diaries | Yuri | |
| 2013 | Company of Heroes | Ivan Puzharski | Direct-to-video |
| Clubhouse | Misha | ||
| 2016 | They're Watching | Vladimir Filat | Final film role |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Total Security | Bodyguard | Episode: "Pilot" |
| Diagnosis: Murder | Thug #1 / Carl | Episode: "A Mine Is a Terrible Thing to Waste" | |
| 1998 | Timecop | Sergeant | Episode: "D.O.A." |
| 1999 | Walker, Texas Ranger | Robert Jackson | Episode: "Power Angels" |
| Pensacola: Wings of Gold | Anton Marisovich | Episode: "True Stories" | |
| 2000 | V.I.P. | Episode: "Val Point Blank" | |
| 18 Wheels of Justice | Alexei | Episode: "Smuggler's Blues", Uncredited | |
| 2001 | The Wild Thornberrys | Elder Beaver | Voice, Episode: "All Work and No Play"[14] |
| 18 Wheels of Justice | Sergei Zukaross | Episode: "Hot Cars, Fast Women" | |
| 2004 | Alias | Vilmos | Episode: "The Frame" |
| 2005 | Wanted | Darsikska | Episode: "The Wild Bunch" |
| 2006 | The Suite Life of Zack & Cody | Waiter | Episode: "Odd Couples" |
| The Suite Life of Zack & Cody | Attendant 1 | Episode: "No So Suite 16" | |
| 2007 | Criminal Minds | Lyov Lysowsky | Episode: "Honor Among Thieves" |
| Shark | Gavin Lundy | Episode: "Fall from Grace" | |
| Burn Notice | Boris | Episode: "Pilot" | |
| 2008 | The Riches | Russian #2 | Episode: "The Lying King" |
| My Own Worst Enemy | Gold Teeth | Episode: "Breakdown" | |
| Without a Trace | Yuri Ovsenko | Episode: "Push Comes to Shove" | |
| 2009 | CSI: Miami | Andrei | Episode: "Wolfe in Sheep's Clothing" |
| Family Guy | Russian Dinosaur / Russian Guard #2 | Voice, Episode: "Spies Reminiscent of Us" | |
| 2010 | General Hospital | Babak | 3 episodes, Uncredited |
| 2011 | Sons of Anarchy | Head Russian | 2 episodes |
| 2012 | How I Met Your Mother | Arvydas | Episode: "46 Minutes" |
| Perception | Alexi Topaloff | Episode: "Faces" | |
| 2013 | Project: SERA | Zakir | Episode: "Immunity" |
| 2014 | Bones | Dimitri Romanov | Episode: "The Master in the Slop" |
| 2 Broke Girls | Yuri | Episode: "And the Kilt Trip" | |
| 2016 | Gortimer Gibbon's Life on Normal Street | Green Beret | Episode: "Gortimer vs. White Hat" |
| Murder in the First | Janko Kolar | Episode: "Rise of the Phoenix" | |
| 2017 | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles | Vulko / Lone Knight / Lead Knight | Voice, 2 episodes[14] |
Video games
Awards and nominations
Music
- 2003: Instrumental and Acting Grand Champion of the World at the World Championships of Performing Arts[15]
References
- http://www.go386.com/movies/2012/05/the-ukrainian-connection.html%5B%5D
- "Short biography of Dimitri Diatchenko". Los Angeles Classical Guitars. Archived from the original on 2008-05-09.
- "Biography for Dimitri Diatchenko". IMDb.
- "Dimitri Diatchenko - Music". www.DimitriD.com. Archived from the original on 2012-07-21.
- "Short biography of Dimitri Diatchenko". HXC MUSIC.
- Scheck, Frank (25 May 2012). "Chernobyl Diaries: Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter.
- "Chernobyl Diaries (2012) - Movie Review". Entertainment Weekly. 2 June 2012.
- "Chernobyl Diaries - Stylish 'Chernobyl Diaries' mostly radiates familiar chills". The Washington Post.
- CNN: Actor accused of killing, skinning and then eating ex-girlfriend's pet rabbit
- BuzFeedNews: An Actor Who Killed His Ex-Girlfriend's Pet Rabbit And Ate It Has Been Sentenced To Probation
- North Hollywood Man Pleads to Animal Cruelty in Killing of Roommate’s Pet Rabbit
- "'Chernobyl Diaries' Star Dimitri Diatchenko Dead at 52". https://www.tmz.com/2020/04/24/chernobyl-diaries-star-dimitri-diatchenko-dead-dies-52/. TMZ. Retrieved April 24, 2020. External link in
|website=(help) - ‘Chernobyl Diaries’ Star Dimitri Diatchenko Dead at 52
- "Behind The Voice Actors - Dimitri Diatchenko". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
- "DIMITRI DIATCHENKO SIGNS WITH "GENERAL HOSPITAL"". WCOPA. Archived from the original on 2012-06-26.
External links
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