Victoria Sirakova/Getty Maria Bakalova, born and raised in Bulgaria, was classically trained in drama and music. She says starring in 2020'sBoratsequel changed her life Initially, her life goal was to move to Copenhagen and work with directors like Lars von Trier Now she can't imagine leaving Los Angeles, and says it's because of the fascinating people she's met there, and not just other celebrities Growing up in Bulgaria, actressMaria Bakalova, who rose to fame in the U.S. after starring in 2020'sBorat Subsequent MoviefilmasSacha Baron Cohen's wild daughter Tutar, never dreamed that one day she'd be a Cali girl. Now that she lives in Los Angeles, though, she says she can't imagine leaving. "I never expected to even come to America," says Bakalova, 28, who is currently starring in the psychological thrillerElectra, in which she plays a mysterious party girl who toys with the psyches of visiting guests at an Italian villa. "Theoretically, I was hoping to go to Denmark because I loved Danish theater," Bakalova continues, noting that she was classically trained in theater, singing and playing the flute from the time she was a child. Level 33 Entertainment/Courtesy Everett Collection "I thought I could move to Copenhagen, learn the language and work there and pretty much stay connected in films in Europe, with directors like Lars Von Trier. Then a magical thing happened, and I was introduced to Sacha Baron Cohen." After she was cast as Tutar, they filmed the movie in L.A. in 2019 and early 2020, and she says something else magical happened: She fell in love with the people in the City of Angels. "I was lucky to meet the type of people, even in the heart of the entertainment industry in Hollywood, in Los Angeles, who were interested in global topics or the environment or connected to politics," she says. "I met a lot of people younger than me who are way much more outspoken about life in general than I knew before. I just fell in love with the place. And I fell in love with the people who live here." She adds, "Then the rest of it, as they say, is history. I was also lucky to meet people who are dedicated to their jobs in different areas from mine. I have friends who are doing wine-tasting. I have friends who are making jewelry. I have friends who are lawyers." Of course, she also has friends in the biz, including Baron Cohen, 53, whom she says will be one of her closest friends for life: "I recognized him as one of my greatest mentors." She went on to earn an Oscar nomination for her work in theBoratsequel. "Even though I studied acting theatrically and classically at school, high school and university, he was my most important teacher," she says. "Watching him, listening to him, getting to know how he approaches the scene, how he approaches the lines, how he approaches situations, has been the highlight of my life. I will do my best to keep him as my mentor, as my friend through the day I die. I listen to him. I trust him. I am grateful for meeting him, tremendously." As for her Bulgarian parents, she says they still live in the Eastern European nation but her mom comes to visit all the time. Her dad? She's not sure if he'll be back. "I finally got my dad here for Christmas this year, and then we had a horrible natural disaster with the fires," she says. The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now! "We were staying under emergency alert and it was horrifying, and you understand how small you are and how dependent you are on the people around you. Because at the end of the day, yes, your house is your home, but your life is the most important thing, your life and the life of your pets, the creatures that you love. That was certainly evidence of how important it is to support each other, and to hold someone by the hand when something like this happens." Of course,theBad Guys 2starcan see her dad when she's back visiting home. "I try to go as many times as possible because I still have my family there and my friends that I grew up with. Also we have a lot of talented people, a lot of filmmakers that are based there, and they're extremely bold, extremely provocative, artistic. So I do want to mix it up and continue to work on both sides." Read the original article onPeople
