Yuri (Gosha) Kutsenko is a Russian theater, film, television, voice and dubbing actor, film director, screenwriter, film producer, singer, and public figure. Honored Artist of the Russian Federation (2013). Born on May 20, 1967, in Zaporizhzhia, Ukrainian SSR. In 1988, he moved to Moscow.
In 2007, he participated in the founding congress of the public movement "For Putin!". From 2008 to 2013, he was a member of the United Russia party.
In 2014, in an interview, he stated that "he would only return to his homeland (editor's note: Ukraine) when people there stop bathing in blood, stop killing grandmothers and children, and when people sober up and realize that they are fighting against themselves."
In June 2018, he was listed in the Myrotvorets database for illegally visiting occupied Crimea (specifically to participate in the filming of the movie "The Balkan Line"), participating in Russian propaganda events, and other violations.
In subsequent statements concerning the conflict in Donbas, the actor "called for an end to the war in Donbas, blaming Ukraine for starting it." He also expressed regret that in 2014 he did not go to Donbas "as a peacekeeper", but was held back by the birth of his child.
Gosha Kutsenko's Stance on the War in Ukraine
At the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Gosha Kutsenko recorded a video on Instagram, where he expressed his emotions regarding what was happening:
My intellect understands what is happening, but my heart is bleeding. Where the war is going on right now is where I was born and grew up. It hurts me deeply.
On June 11, 2022, in Moscow, he took part in a charity basketball match in support of children with cerebral palsy. The funds raised were directed to ill children from Donbas.
In March 2023, in an interview with aif.ru, he commented on how the situation with the so-called SMO affects artists:
The situation in the world has a psychological effect rather than anything else. An artist is an anxious person, with a heart that is perhaps bare rather than pragmatic. And what is happening around us is a tremendous psychological burden. You feel nervous, you think about family and children, about people who are dying. You worry about the common future and live with the feeling of wanting to help and save the world. After all, creative people are peacemakers at their core
He has repeatedly visited hospitals to see fighters of the so-called SMO. He is convinced that performances by artists help military personnel distract themselves from bad thoughts and receive a dose of positive emotions that they need:
The guys really need support, and this is obvious when you communicate with them. I have played on the stage of the Russian Army Theatre for so long, filmed and appeared in so many movies with the help of the military, that I have practically become an employee of the Russian Ministry of Defence
On September 8, 2023, Gosha Kutsenko arrived in the territory of occupied Donbas and visited the Saur-Mogila memorial complex, where he participated in a concert commemorating the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Donbas from Nazi invaders.
Despite his emotional reaction at the start of the full-scale invasion, Gosha Kutsenko took a position supporting the "SMO" and the actions of the Russian authorities, actively participating in events in occupied territories and visiting wounded soldiers.
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