Good Cast choice

[attagirl]

I think that they picked someone who looks just like the character and probably has even the same type of personality you would expect from this player in the game.

[drew888]

Yeah they did a good job of casting him as Zangief. But even he didn't really think he resembled him at first. If he let his hair grow out he probably wouldn't look like him that much.

[Saubha]

I think it is very funny, which was obviously their aim! Since you seem to read these personally, Mike I have to say your portrayal of Zangief is hilarious! The accent is also funny, it sounds more like a pirate than a Russian accent! Lol, I can't believe there are people who call you a commie for such a comical portrayal! 

[Zangief]

LOL! Aw, thanks, man!

The facial resemblance I knew I had but I also knew that they were looking for a Russian bodybuilder for the part so that left me out of the running, or so I thought. Even when I arrived at the camera test I was still convinced I would be reading for the part of a Russian scientist or KGB officer.

I had only just barely acquired the Russian accent for another project (a horror movie) immediately before I was told that there was a new Street Fighter series in the works. I didn't get a chance to really perfect the accent until during our month-long hiatus between the first and second episodes. Ironically, my accent is at its worst in Episode one (where I had most of my dialogue) and, now that I've really aced it, I've had fewer and fewer lines, LOL!

That's show biz!

As for the character, people feel little neutrality for him; it's either love or hatred. Both emotions get expressed by fans when I'm on the street. Mostly love, though, so I can't complain.

[Saubha]

Haha, so what you saying is that it's on the extreme end either way so if you average out all the reactions you've gotten you have neutrality?

[Zangief]

LOL! Only if we're speaking in terms of trend graphs; you know, that strange world where an average American can have two and a half children?

[Saubha]

Yeah, I wouldn't know what to do with a half a kid! I'd at least hope it was the upper-half so I at least have a talking head!

[Saubha]

Speaking of a Russian accent, I think that's one of the reasons why many people say I should be on stage. In every country to which I have travelled (Mexico, Australia, Canada, India), I have picked up the native accent... I am good with dialects... well actually my Indian accent is the worst out of all of them... go figure!

[Saubha]

God, I'm so tangential! Haha, what I was trying to say is that the Russian accent is a very hard one to pull off but you're giving it a very good effort!

[Zangief]

Yeah, I wouldn't know what to do with a half a kid! I'd at least hope it was the upper-half so I at least have a talking head!

LMAO! Personally I think the lower half would make a great plant stand (as demonstrated on "Martha Stewart Living in Hell").

[Zangief]

Speaking of a Russian accent, I think that's one of the reasons why many people say I should be on stage. In every country to which I have travelled (Mexico, Australia, Canada, India), I have picked up the native accent... I am good with dialects... well actually my Indian accent is the worst out of all of them... go figure!

Hmm... All the symptoms of a natural actor if you ask Dr. Zangief.

Don't sweat the less than par Indian accent; those of you who have seen me on TV will attest that I have the worst French accent this side of John Cleese. I don't even really do a German accent although that's mainly my heritage.

[Saubha]

One of the hardest things in acting, I think, is to cry on cue! I have NEVER been able to do that! I don't really cry at all in real life ever, so it is VERY hard to do it in acting as well. I still don't get how actors manage that!

[Zangief]

There are two primary means of achieving that. One is Method (don't get me started on Lee Strasberg).

Method requires that you dig deeply into your life's experiences and, in the case of having to cry, you are supposed to recall something sad enough from your own life to make YOU cry. This gives the illusion that your character is crying when it's really you! That's called "sense memory" and I don't recommend it. Method turns you into the kind of actor who can only play himself on different levels.

Acting, on the other hand, requires that you look deeply into your character's life experiences and draw from those. Let's take, for instance, the murder of Vega's mother. If a scene requires Vega to cry and the actor playing him is a., method and b., still has both living parents, you'll find the actor crying about some other equally sad experience of his own while Vega's mother doesn't even enter into it.

I find that a well written character is complete enough without cluttering him with our own experiences. For instance, If I do a drama and my character has to cry, I let the character do that because he is experiencing his own pain. There is no need to add my own. This is achieved by three guidelines that I like to follow:

Observation

Imitation

Imagination

Once you have those, your character can do the rest. Now, what do you do if your character hasn't been fleshed out enough by the writer to have anything from his past from which to draw? You consult the director and you can both agree on an added backstory that you create yourselves.

One of the things I love about Zangief is that he comes to me fully developed as a character. He needs absolutely nothing from me. He has all of his own history, experiences and memories and the way he feels about anything is based upon his own distinct personality and life. When the cameras roll, I just stand at the sidelines and watch him go. I approach every character that way.

In fact, one of the things that endear Zangief to me is something I mentioned in a magazine article recently:

"I not only love Sam and our wonderful production team, cast and crew but I have come to adore Zangief like he's a real person. He's terrifying just to look at in the ring, he could literally crush you to death in his bare hands, he will endure enormous punishment from an opponent in order to get in close enough to grab him or her and can then dish out even more damage in return! Outside the ring, however, he's a friendly and jovial, big and cuddly, hairy man who is moved to tears easily by a beautiful speech, song or poem and who is clearly smitten with the Japanese hero and fellow Street Fighter legend, Ryu. All of the Street Fighters are possessed of super powers, Zangief being easily the strongest of them all. Yet I believe that, if you really want to take down the Russian giant, all you'd have to do is hurt his feelings and make him cry. For all his badass posturing, trash talking and even his smashing of heads into pavements, at the end of the day he's really just a big, cuddly bear who needs to know that somebody loves him."

[im 3ky]

Zangief is so friendly in the series and thats what i liked him he is one good character(and actor) you playing your role absolutely awesome its good to see that zangief have feelings too lol

[Zangief]

Thank you so much, im, and I remember feeling that way when I read the first script by Sam Reich. Upon really researching the character I came away with the realization that Sam "gets it" regarding Zangief's in-ring/out-of-ring polarized personality.

Several critics have, well, criticized Sam for writing him that way but they apparently only know Zangief's fighting persona.

From the very beginning, in Street Fighter II, upon defeating M. BIson in Thailand, a helecopter descends and Zangief is greeted by President Gorbachev (Zangief has called this one of the greatest moments in his life). When the President makes an inspirational speech to honor Zangief, we see Zangief with tears streaming down his face.

In the first feature film, M. Bison, bristling at having been called a megalomaniac, then goes straight into an obviously megalomaniacal speech just the same by which Zangief is somehow still moved to tears, LOL!

I love that Zangief is so human and that he's so sensitive just under the surface of that mountain of brutal muscle. That makes him easy to love.