Chernobyl

 "Chernobyl" is a 2019 historical drama television miniseries that explores the Chernobyl disaster of 1986 and the subsequent cleanup efforts. Created and written by Craig Mazin, with Johan Renck as the director, the series features an ensemble cast led by Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgård, Emily Watson, and Paul Ritter. HBO produced the series in the United States, and it was co-produced by Sky UK in the United Kingdom.

The five-part miniseries premiered simultaneously in the United States on May 6, 2019, and in the United Kingdom on May 7. It garnered widespread critical acclaim for its cinematography, historical accuracy, performances, atmosphere, tone, screenplay, and musical score. "Chernobyl" received multiple accolades, including Emmy Awards for Outstanding Limited Series, Outstanding Directing, and Outstanding Writing. Additionally, it won the Golden Globe Award for Best Miniseries or Television Film, with Stellan Skarsgård winning for Best Supporting Actor in a Series, Miniseries, or Television Film.

The series follows the dramatized account of the Chernobyl nuclear plant disaster in April 1986, which took place in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, Soviet Union. It narrates the stories of individuals involved in the disaster and those who responded to it. The portrayal extends to the lesser-known aspects of the event, such as the efforts of the first responders, including firefighters, volunteers, and teams of miners who dug a crucial tunnel under Reactor 4.

"Chernobyl" draws inspiration in part from the recollections of Pripyat locals, as documented by Belarusian Nobel laureate Svetlana Alexievich in her book "Voices from Chernobyl." While there have been noted historical and factual discrepancies, the series has received acclaim for its attention to detail. Each episode's release was accompanied by a podcast featuring discussions between Craig Mazin and NPR host Peter Sagal, where they delved into instances of artistic license and the rationale behind them.

Main Cast

• Jared Harris as Valery Legasov, the deputy director of the Kurchatov Institute brought in to aid cleanup efforts.
• Stellan Skarsgård as Boris Shcherbina, a Council of Ministers' deputy chairman.
• Emily Watson as Ulana Khomyuk, a nuclear physicist from Minsk. Khomyuk is a fictional composite character based on the many scientists who investigated the accident.[11]
• Paul Ritter as Anatoly Dyatlov, the deputy chief engineer at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.
• Jessie Buckley as Lyudmilla Ignatenko, the wife of Vasily Ignatenko.
• Adam Nagaitis as Vasily Ignatenko, a Pripyat firefighter and first responder to the Chernobyl fire.
• Con O'Neill as Viktor Bryukhanov, the manager of Chernobyl.
• Adrian Rawlins as Nikolai Fomin, the chief engineer at Chernobyl.
• Sam Troughton as Aleksandr Akimov, the night shift supervisor at Chernobyl.
• Robert Emms as Leonid Toptunov, the senior engineer at Chernobyl.
• David Dencik as Mikhail Gorbachev, the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
• Mark Lewis Jones as Vladimir Pikalov, the commander of the Soviet chemical forces.
• Alan Williams as Charkov, the KGB's first deputy chairman.[12]
• Alex Ferns as Andrei Glukhov, the mining crew chief.
• Ralph Ineson as Nikolai Tarakanov, the chief supervisor of the cleanup operation.
• Barry Keoghan as Pavel Gremov, a civilian liquidator draftee.[13]
• Fares Fares as Bacho, a Georgian soldier and Soviet–Afghan War veteran who trains Pavel.
• Michael McElhatton as Andrei Stepashin, the prosecutor for the trial of Dyatlov, Bryukhanov, and Fomin.

Recurring

• Adam Lundgren as Vyacheslav Brazhnik, the senior turbine operator at Chernobyl.
• Karl Davies as Viktor Proskuryakov, a senior reactor control engineer trainee at Chernobyl.
• Donald Sumpter as Zharkov, a Pripyat executive committee member.
• Billy Postlethwaite as Boris Stolyarchuk, the senior unit #4 control engineer at Chernobyl.
• Joshua Leese as Igor Kirschenbaum, a senior turbine control engineer at Chernobyl.
• Nadia Clifford as Svetlana Zinchenko, a doctor treating Vasily Ignatenko and others with radiation sickness.
• Jamie Sives as Anatoly Sitnikov, the deputy chief operational engineer at Chernobyl sent to inspect the exploded core.
• Baltasar Breki Samper as Alexei Ananenko, one of the volunteers who drained water in Chernobyl's basement to prevent an explosion.
• Philip Barantini as Valeri Bezpalov, one of the volunteers who drained water in Chernobyl's basement to prevent an explosion.
• Oscar Giese as Boris Baranov, one of the volunteers who drained water in Chernobyl's basement to prevent an explosion.
• Douggie McMeekin as Aleksandr Yuvchenko, a senior engineer-mechanic on duty the night of the explosion.
• Michael Socha as Mikhail, a resident of Pripyat and father of a young baby who are both present on the bridge watching the fire.

Guest

• Natasha Radski as Russian news reader.
• Jay Simpson as Valeriy Perevozchenko, the foreman in the reactor section.
• Michael Colgan as Mikhail Shchadov, Soviet Minister of Coal Industry.
• James Cosmo as a miner.
• Peter Guinness as Major Burov.
• Hilton McRae as Milan Kadnikov, the judge presiding over the trial of Dyatlov, Bryukhanov, and Fomin.
• Kieran O'Brien as Valery Khodemchuk, the night shift main circulating pump operator at Chernobyl.
• Alexej Manvelov as Garo, an Armenian soldier who accompanies Bacho and Pavel.
• June Watson as Old Woman
• Josef Altin as Soldier
• Josef Davies as Janek