Biografia
Leonid Filatov was born on December 24, 1946, in Kazan, Tatarstan, Soviet Union (now Kazan, Tatarstan, Russia). His father, Aleksei Eremeyevich Filatov, was a radio engineer who traveled frequently. After his parents divorced when he was seven, Leonid moved with his mother, Klavdia Nikolaevna Filatova, to Ashkhabad, Tajikistan. There, he made his stage debut in an amateur play at his secondary school. In 1965, he moved to Moscow and applied to the State Institute of Cinematography (VGIK), but did not pass the entrance exam. Nevertheless, his persistence paid off, and from 1965 to 1969, he studied at the Schukin Theatrical School at the Vakhtangov Theatre, graduating as an actor in 1969.
From 1969 to 1985 and again from 1987 to 1993, Filatov was a permanent member of the renowned Taganka Theatre troupe, led by director Yuriy Lyubimov. His stage partners included notable Russian actors such as Vladimir Vysotskiy, Valeriy Zolotukhin, Ivan Dykhovichnyy, Natalya Sayko, Boris Galkin, and Aleksandr Porokhovshchikov. Between 1985 and 1987, he worked with the Sovremennik Theatre troupe in Moscow before returning to Taganka. In 1993, Filatov joined Nikolay Gubenko, Natalya Sayko, Zhanna Bolotova, and Nina Shatskaya to form an independent company called "Sodruzhestvo akterov Taganki" (Fraternity of Actors from Taganka).
Filatov gained widespread recognition for his leading role as Igor Skvortsov alongside Georgi Zhzhyonov and Aleksandra Yakovleva in the popular Russian film Air Crew (1980), directed by Aleksandr Mitta. In the 1990s, he established a career as a film director. From 1994 to 1997, he hosted the well-known TV show "Chtoby pomnili" (To Be Remembered) on Russian National TV. In 1997, Filatov suffered a stroke, underwent kidney removal surgery, and remained bedridden for several years. During this period, he received thousands of letters from fans and admirers and was cared for by his wife, Nina Shatskaya, who supported him throughout his seven-year illness. Despite enduring significant physical and emotional pain, as well as depression due to his inability to return to acting, he expressed himself through writing.
Leonid Filatov was honored as People's Artist of Russia in 1994 and received the State Prize of Russia for his contributions to theatre and film. His books and plays were adapted for stage and screen. He passed away from pneumonia and complications related to kidney disease on October 26, 2003, in Moscow, and was buried at Vagankovskoe Cemetery in Moscow.
