Ingeborga Dapkunaite explained why she refused to star in the sequel to 'Burnt by the Sun'

63-year-old Ingeborga Dapkunaite explained why she did not star in the sequel to Nikita Mikhalkov's Oscar-winning film 'Burnt by the Sun', a role that once brought her widespread fame. In an interview with Ekaterina Gordeeva, the actress explained that the reason for her refusal was work circumstances and the inability to guarantee her participation in the project in advance. > "The timing didn’t match. I’m serious. I had to sign that I could be available to shoot the film [with Mikhalkov] at any moment within a year. I couldn’t sign that, so I didn’t sign. It wasn’t an easy decision at the time," Dapkunaite said. During the conversation, the actress also admitted that she no longer maintains communication with Nikita Mikhalkov. When asked how she perceives the director's current views, Dapkunaite noted that she herself would like to get answers to many questions from him. > "I would also like to ask him that question. Well, I don’t communicate [with Mikhalkov] and I won’t even do that," the actress said. Filming for 'Burnt by the Sun 2' took place from 2006 to 2008. As a result, the role that Dapkunaite played in the first part went to Victoria Tolstoganova. At that time, the media reported that the reason for the actress's replacement could have been her participation in a television reality show, which, according to the director, did not fit the artistic atmosphere of the future film. However, Dapkunaite now cites the main reason for her refusal as a mismatch of work schedules. Currently, Ingeborga Dapkunaite lives in Brussels with her son Alex, mother, and sister, focusing on her work in European cinema and theater. In the summer of 2025, the premiere of the film 'Heads of State' took place in London, in which Dapkunaite played one of the roles. Years after the release of the sequel to 'Burnt by the Sun', Ingeborga Dapkunaite clarified the details of her refusal to shoot. The actress emphasizes that the decision was related to professional circumstances, but today her paths with Nikita Mikhalkov have finally diverged not only in work but also in personal communication.