1. Maria Bakalova is the recipient of various accolades, including a Critics' Choice Movie Award, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Golden Globe Award.
30 Facts About Maria Bakalova
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Maria Bakalova mostly portrayed dramatic roles in films such as Transgression, The Father, Last Call and Women Do Cry.
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Maria Bakalova rose to prominence after starring in the 2020 mockumentary film Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, which earned her a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.
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Maria Bakalova has since had starring roles in films of various genres, including Bodies Bodies Bodies and The Apprentice.
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Maria Bakalova had voice roles, including in the Marvel Cinematic Universe film Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.
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Maria Valcheva Bakalova was born on 4 June 1996 in Burgas to Rumyana Bakalova, a nurse, and Valcho Bakalov, a chemist.
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Maria Bakalova began taking singing lessons and playing the flute around age six, and sang in a choir that toured across Europe.
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Maria Bakalova was inspired to pursue film acting after watching The Hunt, and has cited filmmaker Thomas Vinterberg as her biggest influence alongside Susanne Bier, Pedro Almodovar, Paolo Sorrentino and Andrea Arnold as other major influences.
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Maria Bakalova later moved to Sofia where she majored in drama at the National Academy for Theatre and Film Arts.
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Maria Bakalova made her on-screen debut playing a supporting part in the 2017 comedy-drama film XIIa.
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Maria Bakalova secured the role after a classmate of hers signed her up for a blind audition during her first year at university.
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In 2018, Maria Bakalova won the award for Best Actress at Toronto's Alternative Film Festival for her performance.
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Maria Bakalova was sent away because she didn't speak Danish, prompting her to begin studying the language, before eventually graduating and moving to Los Angeles in 2019.
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Maria Bakalova next starred in the 2020 comedy-drama Last Call as Alexandra, a suicidal girl who is on the verge of ending her life.
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Maria Bakalova's performance was received positively by critics, and Yanko Terziev of Capital wrote that her portrayal of the character brought "warmth and lyricism" to the film.
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In 2020, Maria Bakalova portrayed Tutar Sagdiyev, the daughter of fictional Kazakh reporter Borat Sagdiyev, in the mockumentary Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, alongside Sacha Baron Cohen.
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The film was lauded as "the most impactful piece of political entertainment" in the weeks leading up to the 2020 United States presidential election, as a scene in which Rudy Giuliani appears to put his hands down his trousers while reclining on a bed in the presence of Maria Bakalova's character garnered significant media attention.
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Maria Bakalova was nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the Academy Awards, BAFTA Awards, and Screen Actors Guild Awards, and for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Comedy or Musical at the Golden Globe Awards.
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Maria Bakalova became the first Bulgarian actress to be nominated for these awards.
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Maria Bakalova next starred as Sonja, a 19-year-old girl who discovers she is HIV positive and is in denial about her need for treatment, in Women Do Cry, directed by Mina Mileva and Vesela Kazakova.
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Maria Bakalova next appeared in Andrew Durham's directorial debut Fairyland, which premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.
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Maria Bakalova reprised her role as Cosmo the Spacedog in the Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero film Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.
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Maria Bakalova began 2024 by starring in Hala Matar's directorial debut Electra.
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In November 2022, Maria Bakalova joined the cast of the action thriller film Dirty Angels, directed by Martin Campbell.
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Maria Bakalova has topped Forbes Bulgaria "Top 70 Bulgarian Celebrities" list twice.
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Maria Bakalova is an advocate for Bulgarian and Eastern European representation in Hollywood.
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Maria Bakalova is the co-founder of the production company Five Oceans, which aims to bring Bulgarian, Balkan and Slavic stories to international audiences, alongside Julian Kostov.
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At the 27th Critics' Choice Awards, Maria Bakalova voiced her support for Ukraine, and called for "a new era of cultural and artistic exchange between Eastern Europe and Hollywood".
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Maria Bakalova is the recipient of a Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Borat Subsequent Moviefilm.
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Maria Bakalova has been nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the Academy Awards, BAFTA Awards, and Screen Actors Guild Awards, and for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Comedy or Musical at the Golden Globe Awards, for her performance in Borat Subsequent Moviefilm.