Anton Yelchin
Anton Yelchin
Anton Yelchin | |
---|---|
Native name | Антон Викторович Ельчин |
Born | (1989-03-11)March 11, 1989 |
Died | June 19, 2016(2016-06-19)(aged 27) Studio City, California, U.S. |
Cause of death | Blunt traumatic asphyxia |
Resting place | Hollywood Forever Cemetery |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 2000–2016 |
Relatives | Eugene Yelchin (uncle) |
Website | antonyelchinfoundation.org [50]antonyelchinofficial.com [51] |
Anton Viktorovich Yelchin (Russian: Анто́н Ви́кторович Е́льчин, IPA: [ɐnˈton ˈjelʲtɕɪn]}; March 11, 1989 – June 19, 2016) was an American-Russian actor. He played Pavel Chekov in three Star Trek films: Star Trek (2009), Star Trek Into Darkness (2013), and the posthumously released Star Trek Beyond (2016). Born to a Russian Jewish family in Leningrad, Yelchin and his family moved to the United States when he was a baby. In the late 1990s, Yelchin began appearing in television and film roles. His role in Steven Spielberg's miniseries Taken helped further his career.[1] Yelchin also starred in Huff, the films Hearts in Atlantis, Alpha Dog, Like Crazy, Green Room and the posthumously released Trollhunters.
Anton Yelchin | |
---|---|
Native name | Антон Викторович Ельчин |
Born | (1989-03-11)March 11, 1989 |
Died | June 19, 2016(2016-06-19)(aged 27) Studio City, California, U.S. |
Cause of death | Blunt traumatic asphyxia |
Resting place | Hollywood Forever Cemetery |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 2000–2016 |
Relatives | Eugene Yelchin (uncle) |
Website | antonyelchinfoundation.org [50]antonyelchinofficial.com [51] |
Early life
Anton Viktorovich Yelchin was born on March 11, 1989, in Leningrad, Russian SFSR (now Saint Petersburg, Russia).[2][3] His parents, Irina Korina and Viktor Yelchin, were pair figure skaters who were stars of the Leningrad Ice Ballet for 15 years.[4][5] His family is Jewish and were subjected to religious and political oppression in the Soviet Union.[4][6][7] Yelchin had said that his grandparents "suffered in ways [he] can't even begin to understand under Stalin".[7] Nationally, Yelchin's parents were the third-ranked pair team; they thus qualified for the 1972 Winter Olympics, but were not permitted to participate by the Soviet authorities.[4][5] Yelchin had said the reason was unclear: "I don't exactly know what that was – because they were Jewish or because the KGB didn't want them to travel."[8]
Yelchin's family fled to the United States in September 1989, when Anton was six months old, and were thereafter granted refugee status from the Department of State.[4][5] His mother worked as a figure skating choreographer and his father as a figure skating coach, having been Sasha Cohen's first trainer.[9][10] Yelchin's uncle is the children's author and painter Eugene Yelchin.[4] In an article published in the Los Angeles Times in December 1989, Yelchin's mother stated, "A woman came up, saw Anton, and said, 'He's beautiful. He will be actor.'"[4] Yelchin had stated that he "wasn't very good" at figure skating, his parents' profession.[11] Yelchin was born with cystic fibrosis. However, details of his medical condition were only revealed in 2017 after his death by a foundation established in his name, the Anton Yelchin Foundation.[12][13] Yelchin attended the Sherman Oaks Center for Enriched Studies in Tarzana, California,[9] and enrolled at the University of Southern California in the fall of 2007 to study film.[14]
Career
![Yelchin in September 2011](https://everipedia.org/cdn-cgi/image/width=640/https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/46/Anton_Yelchin_2011.jpg)
Yelchin in September 2011
After his film debut in A Man Is Mostly Water, Yelchin's early roles in both film and television included A Time for Dancing,[1] Delivering Milo, House of D and Taken. He guest-starred in the Season Four episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm as Stewart, Cheryl David's cousin and a self-described magician who knows a card trick. Yelchin played Bobby Garfield in Hearts in Atlantis (2001), which is based on Stephen King's novel. He won a 2002 Young Artist Award (Best Performance in a Feature Film – Leading Young Actor) for this performance.
In Showtime's television series Huff, Yelchin played Byrd Huffstodt, the 14-year-old son of the eponymous character (Hank Azaria). In 2006, he guest-starred in the Law & Order: Criminal Intent episode "Tru Love", as a boy who falls in love with his teacher. He also appeared in the Criminal Minds episode "Sex, Birth & Death" as Nathan Harris, a boy who has murderous urges towards prostitutes and approaches Dr. Spencer Reid to help him before he actually does kill.
In Alpha Dog, Yelchin played Zack Mazursky, a character based on real-life murder victim Nicholas Markowitz.[9] USA Today's review described Yelchin's performance as "heartbreakingly endearing".[15] After the film's premiere, Markowitz's mother praised his portrayal of her son.[16] Yelchin subsequently headlined Fierce People, which received a limited release on September 7, 2007. In 2008, he played the title role in Charlie Bartlett, a film about a wealthy teenager in a public high school.[17] He also appeared alongside the Russian duo t.A.T.u. in the film You and I (which was filmed in Moscow during the summer of 2007),[18] and co-starred in Middle of Nowhere.
Yelchin played supporting roles in two blockbuster films released in May 2009: Star Trek, in which he played teenage navigator Pavel Chekov, and Terminator Salvation, in which he played a young Kyle Reese.[19][20]
In 2011, Yelchin played Charley Brewster in Craig Gillespie's remake film Fright Night,[21] starred in the romantic drama Like Crazy, and voiced Clumsy Smurf in the film adaptation of The Smurfs and its sequel.[22][23] He replaced Russell Tovey for the voice role of Albino Pirate in the American version of the animated film The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists! (also known as The Pirates! Band of Misfits) (2012).[24][25] Yelchin voiced Shun in Studio Ghibli's From Up on Poppy Hill.
Yelchin again played the role of Chekov in the 2013 film Star Trek Into Darkness. He also played the lead in the thriller Odd Thomas (2013)[26] and the horror comedy Burying the Ex (2014). In 2015, Yelchin starred in the independent horror film Green Room, which premiered at the Cannes film festival that year and received limited theatrical release in May 2016.
Personal life
Yelchin enjoyed playing the guitar, which he said gave him a lot of fulfillment, and was a fan of acoustic blues music. He once played for a punk band called the Hammerheads.[6][30] He was also interested in photography. In January 2018, an exhibit of Yelchin's photography entitled Anton Yelchin: Provocative Beauty was displayed at New York City's De Buck Gallery.[31]
Death
On June 19, 2016, Yelchin was found pinned between his Jeep Grand Cherokee and a brick pillar outside his house in Studio City, California, the victim of what was described as a "freak accident".[32][33] As Yelchin got out of his car, the vehicle apparently rolled back down his driveway, which was on a steep incline, and trapped him against the pillar and a security fence.[34] The Los Angeles County Coroner's office identified the cause of death as "blunt traumatic asphyxia" and stated that there were "no obvious suspicious circumstances involved".[35][36] He died at the age of 27.
Tributes
![Yelchin's grave at Hollywood Forever Cemetery on March 26, 2017](https://everipedia.org/cdn-cgi/image/width=640/https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1c/Anton_Yelchin_-_THFC.jpg)
Yelchin's grave at Hollywood Forever Cemetery on March 26, 2017
Following Yelchin's death, the producers of Star Trek stated that the role of Chekov would not be recast and that the character would be written out of any subsequent Star Trek films. Star Trek Beyond was dedicated to Yelchin and Leonard Nimoy, who had also died between the release of Star Trek Into Darkness and Star Trek Beyond. Smurfs: The Lost Village was dedicated to Yelchin, as he had provided the voice of Clumsy Smurf in the live-action Smurfs films. Additionally, We Don't Belong Here, Rememory, Porto, Newness, Thoroughbreds, and the first two episodes of Trollhunters are dedicated to him, with the entirety of Trollhunters being dedicated to him upon its conclusion in May 2018. Yelchin was also featured in the "In Memoriam" section during the 89th Academy Awards.[37]
In October 2017, a bronze statue of Yelchin was erected at his grave in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery. Celebrities present at the unveiling ceremony included Jennifer Lawrence, Zoe Saldana, Simon Pegg, J. J. Abrams, Emile Hirsch, Demi Moore, Jon Voight, Drake Doremus, and Jeremy Saulnier. Saldana spoke at the ceremony, paying tribute to Yelchin: "It is a bittersweet moment, because we're here for Anton, and he's not here with us. But, it alleviates my heart knowing that we'll keep him alive. We're going to keep remembering him in the hopes that by practicing all the things he believed in and remembering all the love that he gave us, and all the joy he gave us, we're able to just keep him here with us."[38][39]
On January 28, 2019, Viktor and Irina Yelchin premiered a documentary about their son, Love, Antosha, at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival.[40]
Lawsuit
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, the manufacturer of the Grand Cherokee, was aware of 2014 and 2015 models having a high rate of rollaway incidents due to a gearshift design that could make it difficult for the driver to determine whether the vehicle was in park or still in gear. FCA had already recalled all 2014-15 Grand Cherokees for this concern in April 2016, but the software patch to repair the vehicles did not reach dealers until the week of Yelchin's death. Following his death, FCA accelerated the recall campaign and took steps to get the affected Jeeps repaired more quickly than originally planned.[41]
On August 1, 2016, the attorney for Yelchin's parents announced that they were planning to file a wrongful death lawsuit against Fiat Chrysler.[42] The dealership that Yelchin purchased the vehicle from stated that he was responsible for his own death, because he had allegedly "misused" and "modified" the vehicle. The dealer also asked to be removed from the lawsuit.[43]
On March 22, 2018, it was announced that Yelchin's family and Fiat Chrysler had confidentially settled the lawsuit.[44]
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2000 | A Man Is Mostly Water | Augie | |
2001 | Delivering Milo | Milo | |
15 Minutes | Boy in Burning Building | ||
Along Came a Spider | Dimitri Starodubov | ||
Hearts in Atlantis | Bobby Garfield | ||
2002 | A Time for Dancing | Jackson | |
Rooftop Kisses | Charlie | ||
2004 | House of D | Tommy Warshaw | |
2005 | Fierce People | Finn Earl | |
2006 | Alpha Dog | Zack Mazursky | |
2007 | Charlie Bartlett | Charlie Bartlett | |
2008 | New York, I Love You | Boy in the Park | Segment: "Brett Ratner" |
Middle of Nowhere | Dorian Spitz | ||
2009 | Star Trek | Pavel Chekov | |
Terminator Salvation | Kyle Reese | ||
2010 | Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac | Ace Zuckerman | |
2011 | Like Crazy | Jacob Helm | |
You and I | Edvard Nikitin | ||
The Beaver | Porter Black | ||
From Up on Poppy Hill | Shun Kazama | Voice (English dub) | |
The Smurfs | Clumsy Smurf | Voice | |
The Smurfs: A Christmas Carol | Clumsy Smurf | Short film; Voice | |
Fright Night | Charley Brewster | ||
2012 | The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists | Albino pirate | Voice (American dub) |
2013 | Movie 43 | Necrophiliac worker at morgue | Deleted scene |
Odd Thomas | Odd Thomas | ||
Star Trek Into Darkness | Pavel Chekov | ||
Only Lovers Left Alive | Ian | ||
The Smurfs: The Legend of Smurfy Hollow | Clumsy Smurf | Short film; Voice | |
The Smurfs 2 | Clumsy Smurf | Voice | |
2014 | Rudderless | Quentin | |
5 to 7 | Brian Bloom | ||
The Apprentice | Wayne | Short | |
Cymbeline | Cloten | ||
Burying the Ex | Max | ||
Dying of the Light | Milton Schultz | ||
2015 | Court of Conscience | Father James | Short |
Experimenter | Rensaleer | ||
Kiss Kiss Fingerbang | Dr. Jack Stewart | Short | |
Broken Horses | Jacob Heckum | ||
The Driftless Area | Pierre | ||
Green Room | Pat | ||
Unity | Narrator | Documentary[45] | |
2016 | Rise | Basil | Short |
Star Trek Beyond | Pavel Chekov | Posthumous release | |
Porto | Jake Kleeman | ||
2017 | Rememory | Todd | |
Thoroughbreds | Tim | ||
We Don't Belong Here | Maxwell Green | ||
2019 | Love, Antosha | Himself (archived footage) |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2000 | ER | Robbie Edelstein | Episode: "Be Still My Heart" |
Geppetto | Featured | Television film | |
2002 | Judging Amy | Davis Bishop | Episode: "The Justice League of America" |
Taken | Jacob Clarke – Child | 2 episodes | |
The Practice | Justin Langer | 2 episodes | |
2003 | Without a Trace | Johnny Atkins | Episode: "The Bus" |
2004 | Curb Your Enthusiasm | Stewart | Episode: "The Blind Date" |
NYPD Blue | Evan Grabber | Episode: "Take My Wife, Please" | |
Jack | Jack | Television film | |
2004–2006 | Huff | Byrd Huffstodt | 25 episodes |
2006 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Keith Tyler | Episode: "Tru Love" |
Criminal Minds | Nathan Harris | Episode: "Sex, Birth, Death" | |
2011 | The Life & Times of Tim | Trent | Voice role; episode: "The Caddy's Shack/The Sausage Salesman" |
2015–2016 | SuperMansion | Dudley | Voice role; 2 episodes |
2016–2018 | Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia | Jim | Voice role; 39 episodes; posthumous release |
Video games
Year | Title | Voice role |
---|---|---|
2013 | Star Trek | Pavel Chekov |
The Smurfs 2 | Clumsy Smurf |
Accolades
Year | Award | Category | Title of work | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
2002 | Phoenix Film Critics Award | Best Youth Performance | Hearts in Atlantis | Nominated |
2002 | Young Artist Award | Best Performance in a Feature Film – Leading Young Actor | Hearts in Atlantis | Won |
2003 | Young Artist Award | Best Performance in a TV Movie, Mini-Series or Special – Supporting Young Actor | Taken | Nominated |
2005 | Young Artist Award | Best Performance in a TV Movie, Miniseries or Special – Leading Young Actor | Jack | Nominated |
2009 | Boston Society of Film Critics Awards | Best Ensemble Cast | Star Trek | Won |
2009 | Washington DC Area Film Critics Association Awards | Best Ensemble | Star Trek | Nominated |
2010 | Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards | Best Acting Ensemble | Star Trek | Nominated |