Ukrainian actresses have long ignited the international stage and screen with their talents, beauty, and the unique charisma that radiates, it seems, from women who come from that part of the world. Here we honor just a few. Some are well-known to Americans, others have gained their notoriety in their homeland—and one, in particular, has gone on to become an international legend.
IVANNA SAKNO
Ivanna Sakhno was born in 1997 in Kyiv to a family of filmmakers and dreamt of becoming an actress when she was only seven-years-old. When she was 13, she left Ukraine to study English and acting in Vancouver, Canada and moved to Hollywood in 2013 to pursue her career, attending Beverly Hills High School and then honing her craft at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute under the tutelage of Ivana Chubbuck. Among the major motion pictures she has appeared in are Pacific Rim: Uprising, The Spy Who Dumped Me, and Let it Snow.
TINA KAROL
Born Tetiana Hryhorivna Liberman in 1985, the popular Ukrainian singer, actress, and television presenter performs under the stage name Tina Karol. Awarded the title of Honored Artist of Ukraine in 2009 by then-President Viktor Yushchenko and awarded the Most Beauitiful Singer of Ukraine that same year by the organizers of the Miss Ukraine Universe Contest, she has recorded many albums and appeared on numerous television shows. She is the face of Ukraine International Airlines and hosts Tina Karol’s Intonatsii, a musical series on Ukrainian television.
MILLA JOVOVICH
Born in Kiev in 1975, Milla is one of the most famous Ukrainian-born actresses in Hollywood. The face of Revlon cosmetics was already a highly paid model in 2004 when her striking looks mesmerized audiences in her debut film, Night Train to Kathmandu. Her most memorable performance was in The Fifth Element, opposite Bruce Willis. Today she is best-known for the spectacular film, Resident Evil.
NATALIE WOOD
One of the top actresses—and most beautiful women—of all time, Natalie, born Natasha Gurdin, began her acting career as a child actress, most notably in the Christmas classic, Miracle on 34th Street, when she was eight-years-old, opposite Maureen O’Hara. She appeared in 56 films before her premature death from drowning and was one of the youngest actresses to be nominated for an Oscar, at the age of 17, for her role in Rebel Without a Cause. The list goes on, starring in John Ford’s 1956 classic, The Searchers, Splendor in the Grass (1961), opposite Warren Beaty; Inside Daisy Clover (1964) with Robert Redford and Christopher Plummer; Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1964), Sex and the Single Girl, and cast, albeit dubbed, in two musicals, West Side Story (1961) and Gypsy (1962), opposite the formidable Rosalind Russell. She was married three times—twice, to Robert Wagner, who was her husband when she died in 1981 at the age of 43.
MILA KUNIS
Born in Chernivtsi, Ukraine, Mila immigrated with her family to California in 1991. She made her film debut in Make a Wish, Molly. When she was 14 she began playing Jackie Burkhart in the Fox TV series, That ‘70s Show. Her breakout film came in 2008 when she played Rachel in the romantic comedy, Forgetting Sarah Marshal. She has won numerous awards, including a Golden Globe for Best Suporting Actress and a SAG for her performance in the 2010 psychological thriller, Black Swan. In 2015 she married her former That ‘70s Show co-star, Ashton Kutchner. The couple have two children and live in a sustainable farmhouse designed by Howard Backen, in Beverly Hills that was recently featured in Architectural Digest. The most recent of her 70 acting credits is the 2022 motion picture, Luckiest Girl Alive, in which she stars with Jennifer Beals, and is currently in post production.