Vasily Livanov was especially respected among filmmakers. Among his friends were many outstanding artists.
One of the actor's close acquaintances was Andrei Tarkovsky. They had a long-standing friendship. But because of the director's most famous film, his relationship with Livanov was broken forever. The star of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes could not forgive his friend for betraying him.
The idea of the film Andrei Rublev
Back in the early 60s, Vasily Livanov went to Suzdal. There he was impressed by the stories of the icon painter Andrei Rublev. The actor decided that this plot was worth transferring to the screen. Moreover, Livanov intended the main role for himself, since he believed that he had a portrait resemblance to the painter. The actor shared his idea with his close friends Andrei Tarkovsky and Andrei Konchalovsky, but he did not even suspect what outcome it would lead to.
Livanov and Tarkovsky's Fight
At first, Livanov's friends were delighted with his idea. Together, they decided to start working on the plot as soon as the actor returned to the capital after another shoot.
But imagine his surprise when, in Moscow, he learned that Tarkovsky had already submitted an application to Mosfilm based on the script that he and Konchalovsky had written together. The director tried to calm Livanov down by promising to use his name in the credits of the film Andrei Rublev. There was no talk at all of giving his friend the lead role.
The actor was so angry that he swore off communicating with his former friends. Later, Konchalovsky admitted his guilt before Livanov and confirmed that it was his friend who had come up with the whole film. He even tried to apologize: and although the actor accepted his explanations, he did not maintain contact.
As for Tarkovsky, Livanov once met him in a restaurant. The actor was in another company, but, unable to control his emotions, he stood up, went to the next table and hit his former friend. For this, the police detained him.
