Julian Kostov ( bg, Юлиaн Костов; born 25 August 1989) is a Bulgarian actor, filmmaker, talent manager, and former professional swimmer based between

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

. He starred in the film ''

Another Mother's Son ''Another Mother's Son'' is a 2017 British war drama film directed by Christopher Menaul, written by Jenny Lecoat, and starring Jenny Seagrove, Julian Kostov, Ronan Keating, John Hannah, and Amanda Abbington. The film is based on a true story ...

'' (2017). On television, he is known for his recurring roles in the Sky One series ''

A Discovery of Witches ''A Discovery of Witches'' is a 2011 historical-fantasy novel and the debut novel by American scholar Deborah Harkness. It follows Diana Bishop, a history of science professor at Yale University, as she embraces her magical blood after finding ...

'' (2018), the

Epix Epix (pronounced ''epics'' and stylized as P) is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by the Epix Entertainment LLC subsidiary of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), a subsidiary of Amazon's MGM Holdings, Inc. The channel's pr ...

series '' Berlin Station'' (2018–2019), and the

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fi ...

series '' Shadow and Bone'' (2021–present).

Early life and education

Kostov was born in

Varna, Bulgaria Varna ( bg, Варна, ) is the third-largest city in Bulgaria and the largest city and seaside resort on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast and in the Northern Bulgaria region. Situated strategically in the Gulf of Varna, the city has been a m ...

. His father owns a logistics business and his mother is a judge; he has a younger sister, Lia Kostova. Kostov learned English watching American television as a child. Kostov attended a Spanish-language high school in Varna, IV Language School Frederic Joliot-Curie, before going to the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

to study International Business at

Tilburg University Tilburg University is a public research university specializing in the social and behavioral sciences, economics, law, business sciences, theology and humanities, located in Tilburg in the southern part of the Netherlands. Tilburg University h ...

. After two years, he decided to move to the UK and pursue acting, inspired by

Heath Ledger Heath Andrew Ledger (4 April 1979 – 22 January 2008) was an Australian actor and music video director. After playing roles in several Australian television and film productions during the 1990s, Ledger moved to the United States in 1998 to ...

's performance in ''

The Dark Knight ''The Dark Knight'' is a 2008 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan from a screenplay he co-wrote with his brother Jonathan Nolan, Jonathan. Based on the DC Comics superhero, Batman, it is the sequel to ''Batman Begins'' (2005) and t ...

''. Kostov transferred to the

University of Wales Institute Cardiff , image_name = Shield of Cardiff Metropolitan University.svg , image_size = 150px , motto = cy, Gorau Meddiant Gwybodaeth , mottoeng = The most valuable possession is knowledge , established = 2011 – Car ...

(now Cardiff Metropolitan University) to finish his studies, graduating with a bachelor's degree in Business Studies in 2011. He was admitted to the National Youth Theatre that same year.

Athletics

Kostov holds over 60 medals as a pro swimmer, including a bronze medal at the 2007

Balkan Games The Balkan Athletics Championships or Balkan Games () is a regional athletics competition held between nations from the Balkans and organized by Balkan Athletics. The first games were held in Athens in 1929, and the most recent were being held in ...

. At the age of 12, Kostov became a pentathlon champion for his age group. He was a 10-time National Swimming Champion from 2005 to 2009. In 2007 and 2008, he was awarded Varna's Sportsmen #6 of the Year, and in 2008 he earned the Master of Sport title in Swimming.

Career

Kostov began his acting career in Bulgarian and British productions, including a two episode guest arc on '' 24: Live Another Day'' in 2014. In 2016, he had minor roles in the films '' Ben-Hur'' and ''

London Has Fallen ''London Has Fallen'' is a 2016 American action thriller film directed by Babak Najafi and written by Creighton Rothenberger, Katrin Benedikt, Chad St. John and Christian Gudegast. It is the second installment in the ''Has Fallen'' film series ...

''. He began doing motion capture and voice acting for video games. Kostov starred as Feodor "Bill" Burriy in the 2017 independent British war film ''

''. That same year, he appeared in the American horror film ''

Leatherface Leatherface is a fictional character in ''The Texas Chainsaw Massacre'' film series created by Kim Henkel and Tobe Hooper. He first appears in '' The Texas Chain Saw Massacre'' as a disfigured, cannibalistic and mentally unstable mass murdere ...

''. Kostov landed a number of television roles such as Timur in ''

'' on Sky One, Sergei Basarov in '' Berlin Station'' on

, and Yuri Leniov in ''

Treadstone ''Treadstone'' is an American action drama television series, connected to and based on the ''Bourne'' film series. A "special preview" of the pilot aired on USA Network on September 24, 2019, ahead of its October 15, 2019, premiere. The ser ...

''. It was announced in 2019 that Kosov would play Fedyor Kaminsky in the

fantasy '' Shadow and Bone'', which premiered in 2021. In 2014, Kostov founde
JupiterLights Productions
a Bulgaria-based production and talent management company. They have since run acting workshops. Their debut feature film ''The Dare'' was released in 2019. Jupiter Lights represents Bulgarian actress

Maria Bakalova Maria Valcheva Bakalova, . ( ; born 4 June 1996) is a Bulgarian actress. She is the recipient of various accolades, including a Critics' Choice Award, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Golden Gl ...

in the United Kingdom. Kostov is also the co-founder of the production company Five Oceans alongside Bakalova.

Personal life

Kostov speaks Bulgarian, Italian, English, and Spanish.

Filmography

Filmmaking credits

*''Early Birds'' (2015) – wrote, produced *''The Dare'' (2019) – produced, second unit director

Film

Television

Video games

Stage

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kostov, Julian Living people 1989 births 21st-century Bulgarian male actors Bulgarian expatriates in England Bulgarian expatriates in the United States Bulgarian filmmakers Bulgarian male film actors Bulgarian male modern pentathletes Bulgarian male swimmers Bulgarian male television actors Bulgarian male voice actors National Youth Theatre members Actors from Varna, Bulgaria Sportspeople from Varna, Bulgaria Talent managers