The film adaptation of Henryk Sienkiewicz’s book “” had its premiere on February 8, 1999. Jerzy Hoffman’s production won as many as nine nominations for the Eagles, two statuettes went to the creators. One of the main roles in the film was played by Alexander Domogarov.
Aleksander Domogarov played Bohun. Hoffman saw someone else in the role
Krzysztof Kowalewski as Jan Onufry Zagłoba, Michał Żebrowski as Jan Skrzetuski, Izabella Scorupco as Helena Kurcewiczówna, Zbigniew Zamachowski as Jerzy Michał Wołodyjowski, Zbigniew Zborowski as Longinus Podbipieta, Bogdan Stupka as Bohdan Zenobi Chmielnicki and Jurko Bohun as Aleksander Domogarow. Today, fans of Polish cinema probably cannot imagine a different cast. As it turns out, however, Hoffman almost wouldn’t have hired Bohun to produce the film.
During one of the Walkiria festivals, the director talked about the backstage of his films. He admitted that when he cast Daniel Olbrychski as Andrzej Kmicic in “The Deluge”, he heard many critical comments. “Letters came from all over Poland accusing the actor of not being fit, because he was too ugly, untalented, hunchbacked and other similar nonsense,” quotes Hoffman from rmfclassic.pl. The creator stayed with his decision, but he cast even more carefully in each subsequent role.
In 1999, Hoffman had an idea that he would fit the role of Bohun. However, at that time the actor was busy. “I refused to play Bohun because the script seemed plastic and cartoonish to me,” Linda told Playboy in an interview. Thanks to this decision, today the iconic figure is mainly associated with the Russian actor.
“Bohun is me”
Thanks to the role of the crazy Bohun in “With Fire and Sword”, Aleksander Domogarov gained the status of a star in our country. As we read on the portal Dziennikteatralny.pl, the actor admitted that he thought immodestly that the role of Bohun was created for him. “Because Bohun is me” – he was to repeat. Other actors, and often critics, agreed with his opinion.
Domogarov, due to his physical condition, actually perfectly reflected the figure of a young Cossack warlord. However, in interviews, the actor emphasized that he also wanted to understand the motivations of his character. “I wanted to show Bohun as a psychologically complex character, not just a killer with a saber” – he noted. After the premiere of the film, Domogar also gained female fans who could not understand Helena in the film.
Today, fans who once sigh for Domogarov probably look at the actor differently. The creator became famous after the outbreak of war in Ukraine. The actor stood up for the Russian regime several times. As reported by the Interia portal, when one of the fans wrote him a comment “Bohun, you are a Cossack! Ukrainian Cossack! Stop Putin!”. The actor stated that he is Tatar and Russian – “Hands off Russia!” he said.
Source: Gazeta
Bruce is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment . He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
