The Drama of Lyudmila Artemyeva: Her Husband's Alcoholism, the Loss of a Child, and the Secret She Keeps Silent About 0 11

The actress herself spoke about this very honestly: "I don’t particularly publicize my personal life. It’s a respect for my men, who also don’t reveal me. Private life is still private," writes spleten.net.

It sounds like a motto under which she has lived for the last fifteen years. But let’s figure out what really lies behind this veil of silence.

A Student Romance That Lasted 15 Years

It all started simply — like in a movie. While studying at the famous Shchukin Theatre School, Lyusya met Sergey Parfenov, an actor from Tallinn who enrolled in her course. They often walked, talked about theatre, and dreamed of the stage. Thus, a true romance grew from their common interests and creative closeness. The young couple got married literally in their first year and initially lived in a dormitory, then in a communal apartment.

Life was not easy. There were financial problems, a small room, and the beginning of a career. But there was also a daughter — Ekaterina, who was born while her parents were still studying. For some time, the girl even lived with her grandparents in Tallinn while her parents gathered strength. Later, Ekaterina moved to Moscow with them and grew up as a full-fledged Muscovite.

When the “Primadonna” Took the Helm

But time passes, and marriages are tested not only by love but primarily by everyday life and work. In the 90s, everything went awry. As often happened in those times, Sergey lost his job in the theatre. There were no roles, performances weren’t running, and ahead lay emptiness and uncertainty. This is when his first assistant — vodka — came into play. He tried to drown out the disappointment from the instability of his profession, but in return, he got even bigger problems at home.

Meanwhile, Artemyeva’s career was developing in a completely different direction. She began to act actively, received roles, and garnered the attention of directors. Strangely enough, this became the catalyst for the family’s breakdown. When one partner in a family starts to shine while the other gets lost in their failures, conflicts begin to rise like waves.

Lyusya and Sergey were married for 15 years. But in the end, they decided to divorce. The reasons? Financial problems and the husband’s addiction to alcohol. However, it later turned out that things were a bit more serious — there were drunken brawls and physical abuse. Even their daughter supported Artemyeva in this decision, tired of witnessing such scenes.

The Daughter She Prefers Not to Show

After the divorce, Lyusya raised Ekaterina alone, working herself to exhaustion. But the daughter did not grow up to be an artist — she chose a completely different path. Ekaterina graduated from the Gorky Literary Institute with a degree in German language translation. She works as a linguist and generally tries to avoid publicity in life.

Herein lies Artemyeva’s main “secret.” Her daughter asked her not to showcase her life, not to publish her photographs. And Lyusya listens. She never revealed the name of the man who helped her raise Ekaterina and who was by her side during those difficult years.

By the way, Artemyeva later regretted that she spent so much time on work and paid little attention to her daughter when she was a baby. In her mature years, she admitted to journalists: "I was mainly occupied with work. Now I would gladly spend time with her children." Such is the care from parents, isn’t it? First, you indulge in your career, and then you regret it.

Pregnancy at 49: When Life Writes a Script Tougher Than Cinema

2012. Lyusya is 49 years old, she is already a well-known, successful actress, and suddenly… It turns out she is pregnant. The information came out in the media, and the whole world learned that the star of "Svaty" was going to become a mother for the second time.

Neither her age, nor her status, nor the understanding that this would be risky stopped her. She believed she could carry the child. Perhaps she resorted to IVF, perhaps she simply fell in love with a new person with all her heart — but the fact is that there was hope for a second motherhood.

Filming of "Svaty" even had to be temporarily halted because Lyusya was preparing for the birth. She planned to return to the set after maternity leave. But on December 5, 2012, tragedy struck. A miscarriage occurred late in the pregnancy. The boy she was expecting did not come into the world. Artemyeva lost the child.

This blow was serious. She closed herself off for several months. No interviews about what happened, no comments. Just silence, in which you live with your own pain and try to find the strength to move on.

Rumors still circulate on the internet that Lyusya is remarried. Or maybe not? No one knows. She herself doesn’t say a word about it.

The only thing known is that during her pregnancy in 2012, there was support by her side, there was a pillar. There was a husband — whether official or not, she does not clarify. His name has never been mentioned, and even close friends of the actress are not privy to this. For Lyusya, this privacy is not just a whim or a desire to be interesting. It is respect. "It’s a respect for my men, who also don’t reveal me."

Interestingly, this principle is noted by viewers and fans who discuss her life online. Many of them say: "Personal life is personal for a reason," "No one is obliged to talk about their family." People understand her and support her in her silence.

“Star Disease” on Set and Conflicts with Colleagues

But not everything was so smooth on the set. When Artemyeva came to "Svaty" after her success in "Taxi Driver," she was already a star, while the others were nobody. Her colleague Tatyana Kravchenko later recalled the “star disease.” Lyusya allegedly behaved like a primadonna, directing the directors, changing the staging at her discretion, trying to turn the camera so that her face was in front, while Kravchenko's was in profile.

Here’s what Kravchenko herself said: "Lyusya came to the project after already playing a taxi driver in the eponymous series and behaved like a star… She acted like a primadonna. Lyusya started changing the staging at her discretion, could turn the camera to herself so that she had a front view, while I had a profile."

Interestingly, Kravchenko later admitted: the conflict helped the film. The clashes between Olga and Valyukha on screen looked maximally believable precisely because these relationships were complicated in reality. They didn’t become friends, but they also didn’t have any major conflicts. They simply maintained a professional distance.

But it’s amusing: when it comes to Artemyeva’s “star disease,” no one recalls that Kravchenko could stand up for herself as well. "I’m not a pushover either; later, I started to fall behind too," Tanya honestly admitted.

Transformations That Are Both Scary and Admirable

In recent years, Artemyeva’s appearance has changed quite dramatically. First, she was a brunette, then dyed herself a chestnut, and then suddenly became a short-haired blonde. Moreover, this happened quite abruptly. At the premiere of a film in 2024, the 62-year-old actress appeared in a powder-colored suit and with blonde hair.

The internet seized upon this topic with eagerness. "Where is that sweet and charming woman we knew?", "Is this really the same actress?", "Her new stylist clearly made a mistake!" — such comments flooded the network.

But Lyusya didn’t worry much about it. She explained in one of the interviews:

"I have wigs, changes of looks; for me, it’s normal, I’m an artist, no one asks me, they cut something off me, they do something."

It turned out that behind her stylistic experiments is designer Elena Makashova. She creates looks for the red carpet. And Artemyeva adds:

"I constantly have some changes. And if a person doesn’t change, that’s sad; that’s a big problem. But if they change and don’t pay attention to it, taking it for granted, then they’re moving in the right direction."

What Do Fans Really Say?

Fans view this whole story quite differently than critics imagine. Most express respect and sympathy for Artemyeva precisely as an actress. People praise her naturalness on screen, her talent for transformation, and the sincere emotions in the series she has played. They remember her in "Taxi" and "Baba Yaga," and her characters seem close and real to them.

Yes, there is criticism of her appearance and new roles. Some believe she has "aged" and wish her a better image. Some commentators describe her acting as "grotesque" and "mimicking." But — and this is important — most readers support her decision to keep her daughter hidden and not discuss her personal life publicly.

"No one is obliged to talk about their family," "It’s her right," "I respect that she doesn’t publicize it" — such statements are repeated in the comments over and over.

Her Career While She Remains Silent

While Artemyeva prefers not to talk about her personal life, her work continues. She refused to appear in the seventh season of "Svaty," citing financial disagreements with the producers. Then she hardly acted for several years. But in 2024-2025, she began to appear in new projects again.

She lives a vegetarian lifestyle, cold water instead of sports, no cosmetology, and no public exposure aside from premieres. And that’s, in fact, all she allows the audience to know about herself.