"My tooth was knocked out, and someone shouted, "Look, the Pot!"
Despite the success of the series, Konstantin Plotnikov doubted that "The King and the Fool" would be released in full-meter format. He decided to return to the role of Mikhail Gorshenev only after reading the script. In an exclusive interview with Izvestia, Plotnikov told how he overcomes the fear of returning to an already created image, bears the burden of responsibility to loyal fans, and every time he searches for human depth in iconic characters — from Emperor Peter to the legendary Pot.
"I never thought I'd see you alive."
— On February 19, the full film "The King and the Fool. Forever." What will we see on the screen?
— First of all, it's a fantasy story. It starts from the moment when Mikhail Gorshenev is no longer there. The main action of the film takes place in a fairy-tale world, which, for one reason or another, begins to fall apart. Reality also cracks, and something inexplicable begins. Then the Pot and the Prince go to fight the Necromancer and save the world they once created with their poetry and music.
A shot from the filming of the movie "The King and the Fool. Forever""
— What does it mean for you personally to return to the role of a Pot?
— I didn't believe until the last moment that there would be a sequel. Even when fans and people on the Internet wrote about it, I still didn't believe it. Said: "No, no, I understand what you want, but it definitely won't happen."
I only really believed it when I read the script. Up to this point, despite the conversations, messages from the producers, and some screenshots, I couldn't believe it. And when I read the script, I was immediately attracted to it. Before that, I didn't understand at all how this story could continue. And then I read it and was sincerely delighted.
As for the return itself, it is a great happiness for me. If we talk about the sensual background, then it is an incredible joy to work in such a team again, with these people and try to embody such an interesting image again.
A shot from the movie "The King and the Fool. Forever"
— In the film we will see a very beautiful picture again. Which part of the shoot do you remember the most?
— Definitely a fishing peninsula in the Murmansk region. "The King and the Fool. Forever" is impossible to imagine without this expedition. The whole team lived in tents by the ocean, in conditions of completely unpredictable weather: it could snow in the morning, and in the evening the sun would come out, everything would melt — and so on constantly.
Sometimes it seriously interfered with filming. We used to go to a location for the sake of one scene because of the incredibly beautiful terrain. Upon arrival, everything turned out to be covered with snow, a blizzard began, and I had to shoot something completely different. The conditions were extreme, but at the same time very cool.
A shot from the filming of the movie "The King and the Fool. Forever""
— Were you worried about entering the same river again?
— Yes, very much. This is always the law of the second performance: if something worked out the first time, then the second time it gets scary.
"The only thing I did for the audition was to put on a leather jacket."
— Was it influenced by the band's huge fanbase? Would you like them to approve of your Potty image?
— There is a twofold answer here. On the one hand, of course, we must not forget about this audience and ignore it. The band's fan base is really huge, people really love "The King and the Fool", and this love is very sincere. This side of the coin makes you take your work as responsibly as possible and try to understand the essence of the image.
On the other hand, it's stupid to try to please every fan — it's a thankless task. Therefore, it is important to find a middle ground and just do your job honestly.
A shot from the filming of the movie "The King and the Fool. Forever""
— What kind of response did you get after the series was released?
— To be honest, I was lucky: the response was mostly positive. Of course, both then and now I come across various angry comments — someone didn't like the fantasy part, someone rewound it, and someone turned it off after five minutes, deciding that it was terrible. There is always such a thing. But if you look at it quantitatively, there are still more positive reviews.
— You have an amazing portrait resemblance to Mikhail Gorshenev. Did you notice it yourself before filming? Was it reinforced somehow for the samples?
— No, absolutely not. The only thing I did for testing was to put on a leather jacket. As it is, no, I've never thought about any similarities. Although once, back at the Theater Academy, when my tooth was knocked out, someone in the hallway shouted, "Oh, look, a potty!"
"It was a sign.
— Exactly! But then, of course, I didn't think much of it (laughs).
A shot from the filming of the movie "The King and the Fool. Forever""
— The series has brought you great popularity. How do you handle it? Has anything changed in your life? Can you safely ride the subway, for example?
— Personal space is very important to me, and in this sense, not much has changed. I calmly take the subway, use other public transport, and move wherever I want. It's hard for me to imagine a situation in which I refuse to go somewhere because I'm recognized. At the same time, people, of course, are suitable.
— What do they say?
— Very different things. I was told a pretty scary thing once. The girl came up and said, "I never thought I'd see you alive." It's clear that she didn't mean anything wrong and was very worried, but I asked her never to say that to anyone again.
"I went to study in order not to work in an office"
— At the end of January, you premiered the play "Son" at the Ermolova Theater based on the play by Florian Zeller, where you play the father. This is very psychologically difficult material.
— Yes, so far we have had only two premiere performances. The first one, in my opinion, was disgusting, the second one is already better than the first one. But it's generally difficult for me to evaluate my work. I'm only focusing on the director's reaction — he liked it.
The material itself is incredibly interesting. It was very fascinating to analyze my character Pierre from the point of view of psychology, to observe how a person with an inner core and confidence gradually comes to absolute loss and impotence.
The play "Son"
— Almost every role you play is a psychologically difficult character. How does this affect you?
— It's hard for me to look at myself from the outside, but at home I sometimes hear phrases like: "Kostya, turn off Philip Spanish." It's hard from the inside, of course. But I feel like I'm doing fine so far and I'm moving away pretty quickly. He played, and he played.
— After the Pot, you played Peter I. Both of these figures are easy to build on stamps — they have a very bright public mask. How did you find a living person in them?
— I was not alone in this process. Of course, it was possible to go the easy way, but it's not interesting. The directors and partners helped me a lot.
In the case of Potty, I watched a huge number of videos: interviews, speeches, recordings. I studied what he says, what he listens to, what he reads, what his views are, what he thinks is right and what is wrong. He talked about it a lot himself, so in that sense it was easier for me than with Peter I.
The director Sergey Ginzburg helped me a lot there, who constantly said: we need to find the person behind this monolith. I trusted him completely, and we searched together.
A shot from the filming of the series "The Sovereign"
— You did not come to the profession in a direct way: economics department, work as a manager, passion for drawing. What was decisive?
— I was just walking along this path. I didn't have a moment of inspiration when I saw the play and decided, "That's it, I'm going to become an actor and play a Potty." It didn't happen. At first I went to study just to avoid working in an office, and then I gradually got involved.
— Was there no fear of starting so late?
— Of course I was. But I didn't walk away from some kind of outstanding office career - I worked for four years, and that's it. I had a position that I could return to if I wanted to. But globally, yes, it was very scary.
Actor Konstantin Plotnikov
— Have you thought about who you would like to play next? Potty, Peter the Great... maybe Ilona Mask? Or Hamlet?
— It's funny, but we really discussed Hamlet. But I won't name the dream role yet. I just want interesting stories, strong scripts, and work with talented professionals. And fortunately, I'm lucky to have amazing people.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
