Oleg Taktarov makes soldiers and enforcers convincing without much explanation. We like him most when a film gives him something quieter to do, though too many parts stop at the threat he can supply.
Fi1m perspective
In Predators (2010), Oleg Taktarov hauls a minigun through the undergrowth as Nikolai and gets a quiet scene about his children. There is no difficulty believing him with the weapon, but the conversation is the reason to remember him. We were moved by it: his concern for his children gives us a reason to care about the man doing the shooting. That is where Taktarov is most useful, when the familiar hard man gets a moment that requires something besides physical conviction.
The early Hollywood work runs from a small part in Air Force One (1997) to Oleg Razgul, one of the antagonists in John Herzfeld’s 15 Minutes (2001). His martial-arts background helps explain why soldiers, criminals and enforcers recur through the American and Russian films. It is a useful qualification for action acting, though a casting director can lean on it rather too readily. The question is how much the role asks of him once we have accepted that he could hurt somebody.
National Treasure (2004) puts him in the supporting part of Shippen, amid an adventure we found over-explained and flat whenever it needed action. A credible supporting actor cannot do much about that, and Nicolas Cage’s warmth only partly compensates. Jon Avnet’s Righteous Kill (2008), with Taktarov as Russian mob enforcer Yevgeny Mugalat, offers a more explicit example of the casting habit. Avnet noted how quickly he made an impression; the frustration is that being immediately recognisable as a threat can leave an actor with little else to play.
Nimród Antal’s Predators gives us the strongest reason to look beyond that casting habit, even though the film loses its way after a lean, tense first hour. Nikolai’s toughness accommodates compassion, giving Taktarov something worth doing between the bouts of gunfire. We would welcome another part that lets him speak with that sort of tenderness, rather than merely confirming that he looks capable of violence. For a first encounter, choose Predators, but expect to remember a conversation more clearly than the shooting.
Biography
Oleg Taktarov is a Russian actor and retired mixed martial artist. Born on 26 August 1967 in Arzamas-16 (now Sarov), Russia, he competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship and Pride Fighting Championships, winning the UFC 6 tournament in 1995.
Taktarov moved to the United States in 1994 to pursue acting. He trained at the Playhouse West acting academy in Los Angeles. His film credits include Air Force One (1997), 15 Minutes (2001), Bad Boys II (2003), National Treasure (2004), We Own the Night (2007), Righteous Kill (2008), Predators (2010) as Nikolai, and Den of Thieves (2018). He has also appeared in Russian productions and television series such as NCIS.
