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Actor

1972-02-28 · Lahti, Finland · Male

22 series in the catalog

Ville Juhana Haapasalo (born 28 February 1972) is a Finnish stage and film actor who has worked in Finland and Russia. His acting career started in 1995, after he finished his studies in St. Petersburg. In 2003, he was honored with the State Prize of the Russian Federation for his role of Veikko in the film The Cuckoo directed by Aleksandr Rogozhkin.

Education

Haapasalo was educated in St. Petersburg at the Academy of Performing Arts of the Saint Petersburg State Theatre Arts Academy. He knew no Russian when he began studying. He studied there from 1991 to 1995. It was a difficult period in the 1990s Russia; he was mugged nine times in 1992, tried to commit suicide three times, and because of his financial problems he worked as a driver for the mafia.

Career

Haapasalo's career got a huge lift immediately after his graduation for his appearance in 1995 in a Russian comedy Peculiarities of the National Hunt. But this sudden fame turned out to be stressful for him and he temporarily returned to Finland to work as a truck driver. In 2002, he won the Best Actor award at the 24th Moscow International Film Festival, for his role in the Russian-made film The Cuckoo.

Although his fame comes mostly from film, he also writes for the screen, acts in theaters, and does TV cinema. He also appeared in Finland's Ministry of Transport and Communications' 1998 campaign National Features of Driving instructing Russians on Finnish road rules. He is more widely recognized in Russia than in his country of origin Finland. He has hosted and starred in a number of travel shows on Finnish and Russian TV.

He appeared in the first season of ice show contest Ice Age.

After the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Haapasalo strongly condemned the war, effectively ending his multi-decade acting and media career in Russia. He also shut down his Soviet-themed restaurant in Helsinki. Haapasalo was labelled a traitor by Russian government-aligned media.

Personal life

Haapasalo was born in Hollola, Finland. He speaks four languages fluently: Finnish, Russian, Swedish, and English. His hobbies include playing trombone, ice-hockey, skiing, and skating.

In 2016, Haapasalo opened a Georgian restaurant called Purpur in Helsinki.

Family

Haapasalo married Saara Hedlund in 1995. They divorced in 2026. Haapasalo and Hedlund have two children.

Haapasalo also has a son (born 2009) with Russian director Tina Barkalaya, who is of Georgian descent. In 2026, Haapasalo moved to Georgia and married Barkalaya.

Writer

Perjantai (2003) (TV)

Luonto ja terveys (2006) (TV)

Ville Haapasalo at Rotten Tomatoes

http://www.actors.fi/haapasalo.html

http://www.sonyclassics.com/thecuckoo/core/hasFlash.html