Oleg Stefan ''né'' Oleg Stepanovich Shtefanko (; born September 7, 1959) is a

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

and Russian actor who gained popularity in

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

after moving there to study acting. He later established himself as an American

film actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

following his emigration to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Biography

He studied acting in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

and graduated in 1980, subsequently becoming a member of the Moscow Maly Theater. He starred in several Soviet films until the Soviet Union's collapse in 1991. In 1992, Oleg Stefan emigrated to the United States. Since then, he has appeared in several popular television series, including ''

Frasier ''Frasier'' () is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for 11 seasons from September 16, 1993, to May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey (screenwriter), Peter Casey, and David Lee (scr ...

'' and '' JAG''. He also had a role in

Robert De Niro Robert Anthony De Niro ( , ; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor, director, and film producer. He is considered to be one of the greatest and most influential actors of his generation. De Niro is the recipient of List of awards and ...

's '' The Good Shepherd'' opposite

Matt Damon Matthew Paige Damon ( ; born October 8, 1970) is an American actor, film producer, and screenwriter. He was ranked among ''Forbes'' most bankable stars in 2007, and in 2010 was one of the highest-grossing actors of all time. He has received va ...

. After 2003, Oleg Stefan returned to the Russian entertainment industry, taking on leading and supporting roles in several Moscow-produced films. In 2005, he received a nomination for the Gold Nymph Award as Best Actor at the 45th International Festival of Television Films in Monte Carlo.

Filmography

References

External links

* * 1959 births People from Torez Living people Soviet male film actors Soviet male television actors Soviet emigrants to the United States American male film actors American male television actors Russian male film actors Russian male television actors Male actors from Donetsk Oblast {{Russia-actor-stub