Ukrainian artists, whom audiences are accustomed to seeing on stage, on air, or in comedy shows, often lend their voices to the dubbing of cult Hollywood films. Behind familiar movie characters—Captain Jack Sparrow, the heroines of the musical fantasy «Wicked», the demigod Maui, and the Knights of the Round Table—stand the voices of singers, comedians, and TV hosts working in completely different roles. The XAB.info editorial team has gathered verified examples from Styler (RБК-Україна project) showing how Ukrainian stars voiced famous film characters.
Jack Sparrow and Maui: One Voice, Two Franchises
The pirate adventure franchise tells the story of Captain Jack Sparrow, who constantly gets into dangerous situations, searches for treasure, and tries to outsmart enemies amid curses and sea legends. Ukrainian singer Oleh «Fagot» Mykhailiuta from the TNMK band voiced this character in several parts of the franchise, dubbing Johnny Depp. The same artist gave his voice to the demigod Maui in the adventure film «Moana», where Dwayne Johnson played him in the original. In this film, young Vaiana goes on a sea voyage to save her people, and Maui becomes her companion, overcoming trials together with her.
«Wicked»: Ukrainian Vocals in Musical Fantasy
The musical fantasy «Wicked» tells the story of Elphaba and Glinda, who meet at Shiz University in the Land of Oz. Despite their different personalities, the girls grow closer, but their views on justice and power gradually diverge, illustrating how a person's reputation is formed. In the Ukrainian dub, singer Zlata Ognevich voiced Glinda (Ariana Grande in the original), and Victoria Tyshkevych voiced Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo). Elphaba's vocal parts were performed by Valentyna Lonska. Prince Fiyero was voiced by Viacheslav Kostiukov, and his songs were performed by Yevhen Anishko.
«Monty Python and the Holy Grail»: About 50 Comedians and Musicians in the Dub
The 1975 British comedy «Monty Python and the Holy Grail» parodies the legends of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table: the heroes set off in search of the Grail but encounter absurd situations and strange opponents. About 50 comedians, musicians, and actors joined the Ukrainian dubbing. Vasyl Baidak voiced several characters, Mark Kutsevalov voiced Prince Herbert, Dasha Kubyk voiced the Witch, Roman Mescheriak voiced Brother Maynard, and Natalia Garypova voiced the Crone. The Three-Headed Knight was voiced by members of the «Kurgan & Agregat» band.
«The Matrix» as Part of the «Hollywood in Ukrainian» Project
The sci-fi film about programmer Neo, who discovers that his familiar world is an artificial reality created by machines, received a Ukrainian version as part of the «Hollywood in Ukrainian» project by SWEET.TV. Its goal is to provide quality Ukrainian dubbing for cult Hollywood films that previously lacked a full Ukrainian audio track. Well-known Ukrainians, including Yuriy Horbunov, Ruslana Pysanka, and Viktor Andrienko, were involved in the project.
Conclusion: Dubbing as a Crossover Platform
The examples collected by Styler show that Ukrainian dubbing has long ceased to be just technical work: it is a platform where singers, comedians, and TV hosts get the opportunity to «come to life» in new roles, and audiences recognize familiar voices in unexpected contexts. From pirate and mythological franchises to satirical comedies and science fiction, Ukrainian stars effectively shape the soundscape of cult cinema for the Ukrainian- and Russian-speaking audience.
