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Mila Kunis Tells Off Reporter in Fluent Russian: Impressed?

SodaHead Celebs 2011/08/03 21:42:31
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Russian reporters at this week's Moscow press junket for "Friends With Benefits" must have known Mila Kunis could speak Russian. Finding that out is as simple as skimming her Wikipedia page.

What they didn't account for was her chutzpah (just don't ask Michele Bachmann how to pronounce that).

Kunis took a Moscow reporter by surprise when she began responding directly to her questions in fluent Russian, and it's clear from Kunis' demeanor she's not thrilled with the reporter's question.

According to Gawker, the reporter was asking why her "Friends With Benefits" co-star Justin Timberlake had decided to pursue acting instead of continuing his successful music career.

Timberlake, hindered by a delayed translation from his earpiece, sat back smirked as Kunis took over.

Her response, in English, went something like, "Why movies? Why not? What kind of question is that? Why are you here?"

Some essential background on the "Black Swan" star: Kunis and her family moved to the States from the Russian-speaking Ukrainian SSR in 1991, when she was 7 years old, due to anti-Semitic sentiments prevalent in the area. They had to win two separate lotteries to get permission to leave the country for the U.S., and the process took five years.

It wasn't long before she started getting walk-on guest spots in television shows like "Baywatch" and "7th Heaven," and in 1998 she landed her career-making role as Jackie Burkhart on "That '70s Show" with Ashton Kutcher and Topher Grace.

But she never forgot her roots, or her mother tongue.

All we can say is, you go girl!

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  • Wayne 2011/08/06 16:50:40
    Da! (YES!)
    Wayne
    damn she is so hooooooooooooooooot
  • Kim 2011/08/06 00:50:07
    Da! (YES!)
    Kim
    wish I could do that.
  • Hey! I like your eyes<3 2011/08/05 14:24:50
    Da! (YES!)
    Hey! I like your eyes<3
    Damn, Mila! You tear her a new one!!!
  • SkepticalSpider 2011/08/05 12:52:53
    Da! (YES!)
    SkepticalSpider
    <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 her
  • American_Dream_Lost 2011/08/05 10:57:24
    Da! (YES!)
    American_Dream_Lost
    Get em' Girl!
  • v h d 2011/08/05 09:58:35 (edited)
    Da! (YES!)
    v h d
    I used to watch her on that 70's for a short while but I was never impressed by her as an actress. Russian is a sexy language to me. It's great she still knows it. I like her a bit more for her 'chutzpah'. That was great. I'm sure the person didn't expect that. Lol.
  • zomgitsyoulol 2011/08/05 08:52:13
    Da! (YES!)
    zomgitsyoulol
    I <3 Mila Kunis!! XD
    I has crush :P
  • Skeptic... zomgits... 2011/08/05 12:52:03
    SkepticalSpider
    +1
    in Soviet Russia Kunis crush you!
  • zomgits... Skeptic... 2011/08/05 21:17:15 (edited)
    zomgitsyoulol
    lmao Hewy yeah!! Going to Russia now! lol ^^
    lmao hewy yeah russia lol mila kunis
  • observer 2011/08/05 06:12:34
    Nyet!
    observer
    Russian is her native language. Naturally, she can speak it.
  • Kelley Nichole 2011/08/05 05:19:08
    Da! (YES!)
    Kelley Nichole
    More celebs need to knock the paparazzi down some pegs! good for her!
  • sally 2011/08/05 04:09:06
    Da! (YES!)
    sally
    +1
    It's great that despite not really needing her native tongue for her job, she didn't forget it.
  • Tom 2011/08/05 02:24:02
    Da! (YES!)
    Tom
    +1
    you go Mila
  • Pureblood_ 2011/08/05 01:31:22
    Da! (YES!)
    Pureblood_
    ничего себе. она является удивительным! прекрасный...
    <3
  • theunbubba 2011/08/04 22:24:06
    Nyet!
    theunbubba
    What impresses me is that she stands up to reporters. Doesn't matter what language it's in.
  • it'skrissie!d:) 2011/08/04 21:27:30
    Da! (YES!)
    it'skrissie!d:)
    Почему бы и нет? У нее есть точки.
  • lmnlme10921 2011/08/04 20:51:19
    Da! (YES!)
    lmnlme10921
    even if it is her native language, it's still impressive to hear people speak another language fluently.
  • marcie 2011/08/04 20:34:35
    Nyet!
    marcie
    +1
    What is so special about that? She was raised speaking russian, moved here and learned english but I am sure russian was still spoken in her home with family.
  • Brother Bo 2011/08/04 20:23:06
    Nyet!
    Brother Bo
    +2
    What's so impressive? English is her second language, Russian is her first. Let her lash out in perfect Korean or Portugese and I'll be impressed.
  • ☠ Live Free Or Die ☠ 2011/08/04 20:14:58
    Da! (YES!)
    ☠ Live Free Or Die ☠
    Smexy!
  • SkittleE 2011/08/04 19:58:36
    Da! (YES!)
    SkittleE
    Wow, she rocks!
  • cccp~marxist-leninst 2011/08/04 19:47:46
    Da! (YES!)
    cccp~marxist-leninst
    Russian can be hard to learn.
  • XxAkatsuki-FanxX 2011/08/04 19:16:09
    Nyet!
    XxAkatsuki-FanxX
    Wow, maybe Kunis was on her period during this interview...I mean the question, however bland, was not an offensive one and not even directed towards her. Oh wait, she's originally from the Ukraine...that might explain a few things (please note that Ukrainians don't like Russians)..... Jesus, she sounds so rude. Why is it so impressive that she can still speak a language that she grew up with, or that anyone who speaks two or more languages is suddenly cool? God people are so easily amused...
  • RPW 2011/08/04 19:14:52
    Da! (YES!)
    RPW
    Well I am anyway, even if she has the background - its always impressive to watch and listen to bilingual people.....
  • lawlerskates 2011/08/04 19:12:35
    Da! (YES!)
    lawlerskates
  • April 2011/08/04 18:45:06
    Da! (YES!)
    April
    Wow, I am always impressed by people who can speak multiple languages and with correct inflection. I never would have known English was her second language. I do not have the gift of languages. I have tried and failed, and failed, and failed.....
  • earl 2011/08/04 18:42:32
    Da! (YES!)
    earl
    Я очень впечатлен. Истинно американской ветошь для богатства рассказ.
    Какие красивые женщины.
  • FunkyMunky 2011/08/04 18:42:16
    Da! (YES!)
    FunkyMunky
    +1
    This girl is smoking hot.
  • BBoy legacy 2011/08/04 18:10:13
    Nyet!
    BBoy legacy
    She's a very beautful woman. I had no idea she was from the Ukraine.
  • Crystal 2011/08/04 17:50:34
    Nyet!
    Crystal
    +1
    She is Ukrainian. Her family probably still speak the language when they get together. What's so impressive about her not forgetting her mother tongue?
  • Maria Crystal 2011/08/04 19:55:57
    Maria
    +1
    It's impressive because, generally speaking, when people from other cultures come to the U.S they begin to lose their old culture and even the language. You'd be surprised how many immigrants drop their mother tongue as soon as they get here because they think it'll be "to their advantage".
  • Crystal Maria 2011/08/04 20:55:08
    Crystal
    +1
    I disagree. They may pretend to have forgotten their mother tongue, but they still usually speak it in their family.
    I have quite a few acquaintances who left Romania for the U.S. and they still speak Romanian perfectly a good 20 years afterwards.
    I guess if you must find something impressive about Mila Kunis's mastery of her own mother tongue, you can find it impressive that she is not one of those people who pretend to have forgotten it (i.e. snobs). Otherwise, there really is nothing impressive about it. It's all natural.
  • observer Crystal 2011/08/05 00:43:13
    observer
    She is not Ukrainian. She is probably Jewish. This is what is written in the article:
    "Kunis and her family moved to the States from the Russian-speaking Ukrainian SSR in 1991, when she was 7 years old, due to anti-Semitic sentiments prevalent in the area."
  • Crystal observer 2011/08/05 01:17:12
    Crystal
    +1
    We are both right, she is Ukrainian and Jewish at the same time. And now she is also American.
  • observer Crystal 2011/08/05 02:30:15
    observer
    As I said, she is probably Jewish. One can't be Ukranian and Jewish at the same time. These are 2 different races. The Jewish people belong to the Semitic race, while the Ukranians belong to the Slavic race. Also, if one wants to mention the country she is from, it was the Soviet Union at that time. In the Soviet Union they referred as "Nationalities" to what here in the US is called "Races". In the Soviet Union there were very many nationalities: Russians, Ukranians, Belorussians, Jews, Tatars, Armenians, and so on. All of them were citizens of the USSR (the Soviet Union).
  • Crystal observer 2011/08/05 03:05:24 (edited)
    Crystal
    Actually, one can be both at the same time. First off, Jewish is a religion and not a race. Many people throughout the world have converted to Judaism. You may have noticed that there are all sorts of Jewish people and they do not all share common physical traits.
    Slavic people are usually Indo-European people who speak Slavic languages. I think you need to distinguish between race and nationality. Not at all the same thing.
    Also, we distinguish between nationality and citizenship. People who became part of the Soviet Union still had a right to mantain their nationality, even if they were now part of the USSR. One could be a citizen of the USSR and be of Ukrainian nationality.
    "The word citizenship is often used in a different sense from nationality. The most common distinguishing feature of citizenship is that citizens have the right to participate in the political life of the state, such as by voting or standing for election. The term national can include both citizens and non-citizens." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
  • observer Crystal 2011/08/05 03:57:44 (edited)
    observer
    The Jewish people belong to the Semitic race, which includes also the Arabs, the Copts (descendants of the Ancient Egyptians), the Chaldeans (descendants of the Ancient Babylonians), and the Assyrians. Thousands of years ago this race included also Phoenicians, but today they are not around, since they don't exist anymore.

    The Semitic race belongs to the Mediterranian group of the Southern branch of the Europeoid race.

    Slavic people are: 1. Easten Slavs: Russians, Ukrainians, Byelorussians

    2. Western Slaves: Poles, Czechs, Slovacs

    3. Southern Slavs: Serbs, Croats, Slovenians, Macedonians

    The Soviet Union consisted of 15 republics: Russia, the Ukraine, Byelorussia, Gruzia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Moldavia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tadzhikistan, Kirghizia, Turkmenia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia.

    All the people of the USSR were citizens of the USSR. Each person had his/her passport from the day when the person turned 16. In each person's passport there were several lines that had to be filled: 1.Name; 2.Date of birth; 3.Place of birth; 4. Nationality.

    Nationality was the feature which, as I said, is called Race here in the US. A person was Russian if his/her parents were Russians. A person was Jewish if his/her parents were Jewish. A person was Armenian if his/her pa...



    The Jewish people belong to the Semitic race, which includes also the Arabs, the Copts (descendants of the Ancient Egyptians), the Chaldeans (descendants of the Ancient Babylonians), and the Assyrians. Thousands of years ago this race included also Phoenicians, but today they are not around, since they don't exist anymore.

    The Semitic race belongs to the Mediterranian group of the Southern branch of the Europeoid race.

    Slavic people are: 1. Easten Slavs: Russians, Ukrainians, Byelorussians

    2. Western Slaves: Poles, Czechs, Slovacs

    3. Southern Slavs: Serbs, Croats, Slovenians, Macedonians

    The Soviet Union consisted of 15 republics: Russia, the Ukraine, Byelorussia, Gruzia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Moldavia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tadzhikistan, Kirghizia, Turkmenia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia.

    All the people of the USSR were citizens of the USSR. Each person had his/her passport from the day when the person turned 16. In each person's passport there were several lines that had to be filled: 1.Name; 2.Date of birth; 3.Place of birth; 4. Nationality.

    Nationality was the feature which, as I said, is called Race here in the US. A person was Russian if his/her parents were Russians. A person was Jewish if his/her parents were Jewish. A person was Armenian if his/her parents were Armenians. And so on.

    It didn't matter at all where he/she was born, or where he/she lived. For example, my friend was German. That was written in his passport. He was born in Russia, has never been in Germany, and German was to him as foreign language as it was to me. However, he WAS German because his parents were Germans. Similarly, a person who has never been in Armenia and couldn't speak the Armenian language, still would be an Armenian, if his/her parents were Armenians. And so on.

    And all this had nothing to do with religion. The people of the USSR in their vast majority were atheists. If somebody was a religious person, it was his/her private issue, and it wasn't recorded neither in his/her passport, nor in any other documents.
    (more)
  • Crystal observer 2011/08/05 15:05:13 (edited)
    Crystal
    As I said, Jewish people are not only those of Semitic ancestry (in fact, Semitic also refers to a language family and not a race). Judaism as a religion spread to a lot of ethnicities throughout the years. Judaism was the first religion to actively seek converts, long before Christianity did. In fact, this is in part how Christianity spread, too: by converting people who had converted to Judaism to Christianity.
    Judaism spread throughout the whole world, encompassing people of many ethnic groups. It was a religion before VERY modern times, when it began to be perceived as an ethnicity. Specifically, "In the 1980s, the United States Supreme Court ruled that Jews are a race, at least for purposes of certain anti-discrimination laws." http://www.jewfaq.org/judaism...
    The fact that you enumerate Slavic peoples does not mean that they are a race in itself. They are called Slavic based on their language. They are actually of the same race as Germanic peoples.
    This is why I call them different nationalities and not "races" (I take race to mean "sub-Saharan Africans, Caucasians, Greater Asians, Australopapuans and Amerindians" as this guy lists them here http://www.goodrumj.com/RFaqH... ), because it seems to me your usage of this term is prone to falsely create divisions between peop...


    As I said, Jewish people are not only those of Semitic ancestry (in fact, Semitic also refers to a language family and not a race). Judaism as a religion spread to a lot of ethnicities throughout the years. Judaism was the first religion to actively seek converts, long before Christianity did. In fact, this is in part how Christianity spread, too: by converting people who had converted to Judaism to Christianity.
    Judaism spread throughout the whole world, encompassing people of many ethnic groups. It was a religion before VERY modern times, when it began to be perceived as an ethnicity. Specifically, "In the 1980s, the United States Supreme Court ruled that Jews are a race, at least for purposes of certain anti-discrimination laws." http://www.jewfaq.org/judaism...
    The fact that you enumerate Slavic peoples does not mean that they are a race in itself. They are called Slavic based on their language. They are actually of the same race as Germanic peoples.
    This is why I call them different nationalities and not "races" (I take race to mean "sub-Saharan Africans, Caucasians, Greater Asians, Australopapuans and Amerindians" as this guy lists them here http://www.goodrumj.com/RFaqH... ), because it seems to me your usage of this term is prone to falsely create divisions between people who in reality share a race. In reality, the divisions are of ethnicity.
    Also, as I said, you need to differentiate between citizenship and nationality. None of the things you said refutes any of the things I said.
    Also, while the official propaganda during the USSR was indeed atheistic, that does not mean that "The people of the USSR in their vast majority were atheists."
    Romania was also communist for a long time. The official propaganda was that people were supposed to be atheistic. That does not in any way mean that in reality they were. Not even close. Most people were still calling themselves Orthodox Christians and still went to church and held Christian beliefs.
    (more)
  • observer Crystal 2011/08/05 21:07:09
    observer
    You are talking here about things you know nothing about.

    There is a Semitic race, as I've pointed out to you. You can read about it, but you don't want to.
    There are Semitic languages as well.

    "Judaism as a religion spread to a lot of ethnicities throughout the years." Judaism has NEVER spread to "a lot of ethnicities". The Jewish people have migrated to many countries throughout the years, NOT the religion of Judaism. In the countries of Europe and Middle East the Jewish people lived separately from the natives of those countries. There were no intermarriages, as they were banned by both Judaism and Christianity/ Islam.

    "Judaism was the first religion to actively seek converts"
    Judaism NEVER sought converts, and doesn't seek converts today. This is a very important feature distinguishing Judaism from Christianity and Islam. Again, you can read about it, but you probably will not.

    "Judaism spread throughout the whole world, encompassing people of many ethnic groups."
    I've already addressed this as a pure fiction.

    "The fact that you enumerate Slavic peoples does not mean that they are a race in itself. They are called Slavic based on their language."
    Again, you are talking about something you know nothing about.
    Each of the Slavic peoples has its own language. O...









    You are talking here about things you know nothing about.

    There is a Semitic race, as I've pointed out to you. You can read about it, but you don't want to.
    There are Semitic languages as well.

    "Judaism as a religion spread to a lot of ethnicities throughout the years." Judaism has NEVER spread to "a lot of ethnicities". The Jewish people have migrated to many countries throughout the years, NOT the religion of Judaism. In the countries of Europe and Middle East the Jewish people lived separately from the natives of those countries. There were no intermarriages, as they were banned by both Judaism and Christianity/ Islam.

    "Judaism was the first religion to actively seek converts"
    Judaism NEVER sought converts, and doesn't seek converts today. This is a very important feature distinguishing Judaism from Christianity and Islam. Again, you can read about it, but you probably will not.

    "Judaism spread throughout the whole world, encompassing people of many ethnic groups."
    I've already addressed this as a pure fiction.

    "The fact that you enumerate Slavic peoples does not mean that they are a race in itself. They are called Slavic based on their language."
    Again, you are talking about something you know nothing about.
    Each of the Slavic peoples has its own language. One of them (Russian) is my native language. The Ukranian language has similarities with the Russian to the extent that I can understand if not all, most of what has been said in the Ukrainian. Polish is much less close to the Russian. When I listen to the Polish speech, I pick up only a few words sometimes. Not more than that.

    "In reality, the divisions are of ethnicity."
    This term is in use in America. In the USSR there was the term "Nationality", not "Ethnicity".

    "Also, as I said, you need to differentiate between citizenship and nationality."
    I don't need to differentiate. Instead, you may need to learn. I'm telling you about the USSR, where you haven't ever been, and where I lived for most of my life. But I guess you don't want to learn.

    "Also, while the official propaganda during the USSR was indeed atheistic, that does not mean that "The people of the USSR in their vast majority were atheists." "Most people were still calling themselves Orthodox Christians and still went to church and held Christian beliefs."

    Once again, you are talking about something you know nothing about.
    (more)
  • Crystal observer 2011/08/19 18:50:27 (edited)
    Crystal
    Actually, you may want to read about these things yourself. There is no Semitic race, even though you "pointed it out" to me.
    It seems to me you are making a lot of assertions, mainly telling me to read about it and that I am uninformed, yet you never tell me where exactly to read about it to inform myself. Perhaps you would like to learn that there are indeed many authors who talk about early Judaic proselytism. Here, in this document, there is almost an entire page filled with these authors' books. http://johndickson.org/files/...
    Perhaps you should read them.
    Here is some modern-day proselytism: http://bejewish.org/?page_id=48
    "Each of the Slavic peoples has its own language." Yeah, I never said that they don't. The point was that the divisions are of language and not of race.
    "Race" I've already explained to you. If you don't want to learn, your problem, but stop acting like you know.
    Ethnicity and nationality are not the same thing. Please inform yourself on that. But I guess you don't want to read and inform yourself.
    I love how in the last paragraph you attempt such an obvious manipulation: you take what I said about ROMANIA and paste it in the context of what I said about the USSR.
    "Most people were still calling themselves Orthodox Christians and still went to church and he...

    Actually, you may want to read about these things yourself. There is no Semitic race, even though you "pointed it out" to me.
    It seems to me you are making a lot of assertions, mainly telling me to read about it and that I am uninformed, yet you never tell me where exactly to read about it to inform myself. Perhaps you would like to learn that there are indeed many authors who talk about early Judaic proselytism. Here, in this document, there is almost an entire page filled with these authors' books. http://johndickson.org/files/...
    Perhaps you should read them.
    Here is some modern-day proselytism: http://bejewish.org/?page_id=48
    "Each of the Slavic peoples has its own language." Yeah, I never said that they don't. The point was that the divisions are of language and not of race.
    "Race" I've already explained to you. If you don't want to learn, your problem, but stop acting like you know.
    Ethnicity and nationality are not the same thing. Please inform yourself on that. But I guess you don't want to read and inform yourself.
    I love how in the last paragraph you attempt such an obvious manipulation: you take what I said about ROMANIA and paste it in the context of what I said about the USSR.
    "Most people were still calling themselves Orthodox Christians and still went to church and held Christian beliefs." in ROMANIA, during the Communist period. Please do not tell me I know nothing about this, because now we are talking about MY country and its recent history, which I DO know and much better than you.
    Anyway, this is what I have to say, I stand by these things which you have not refuted (not even close), by choosing to instead deny it without proof and tell me to inform myself. I suggest that you start to inform yourself, too. Maybe next time we will both be a little bit more informed and this can only benefit us both.
    As far as I'm concerned, you have only made this last post to troll, since you bring NOTHING to the discussion, so I'd say let's stop here and give it a rest. Neither of us is budging. Not to mention that we are both waaaaaay off-topic and discussing this in a very trivial context of a Hollywood actress who does something apparently incredibly impressive, i.e. speak her own native tongue.
    (more)

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