Filming for a new historical television series about the Battle of Kulikovo has begun in Tula Oblast, featuring actor Anton Khabarov as Prince Dmitry Donskoy. Mounted actors in armor are currently shooting battle scenes across the central Russian countryside for the large-scale production.
The storyline centers on Prince Mikhail, a young leader who suffers severe personal losses while battling the invading Golden Horde forces. In the wake of his tragedy, Mikhail finds purpose in uniting the Russian principalities and resolves to sacrifice himself for the cause.
The emotional core of the drama focuses on the complex relationship between Mikhail and Olga, the widow of his deceased brother. Actor Igor Stepashin, 26, takes on the role of Mikhail in his first leading cinematic performance and his first appearance in a historical costume drama. Stepashin, who previously starred in the detective thriller series Children of Change, wears medieval battle armor on screen for the first time. Actress Tina Stoilkovic, 27, portrays Olga, bringing prior experience in historical drama productions to the set.
Star Cast and Historical Figures
Producers paired the young lead actors with established Russian screen stars to anchor the major historical roles. Anton Khabarov plays Prince Dmitry Donskoy, the Moscow ruler who led the Russian armies against the Mongol-Turkic forces. Actor Fyodor Dobronravov stars alongside Khabarov as Sergius of Radonezh, the revered monastic leader of medieval Russia. The ensemble cast also includes Anton Rogachev, Anna Bogomolova, Andrey Maksimov, Kirill Karo, and Ivan Fominov.
Depicting the Golden Horde Era
The confrontation between Russian princes and the Golden Horde has served as the foundation for several major film and television projects over recent decades. In the late 1980s, the film Daniil: Prince of Galicia depicted the military struggle of the Galician-Volhynian Principality against foreign invaders. Subsequent feature films addressing the era include The Horde in 2012, Legend of Kolovrat in 2017, and the recent historical action movie Fierce City, which details the siege of Kozelsk by the forces of Khan Batu.
On television, the Mongol-Tatar period was previously featured in Golden City, a historical melodrama starring actress Yulia Peresild. Past screen adaptations often struggled to depict historical realities accurately, frequently mixing battle sequences with fantasy elements and romantic subplots rather than strictly adhering to medieval history. The new Tula production aims to balance personal drama with the historic struggle for Russian unity.
