Photos of the actors of the Chernobyl series in comparison with the real participants in the Chernobyl accident

The Chernobyl accident has been firmly embedded in the public consciousness with the release of the critically acclaimed HBO miniseries Chernobyl, which provides a dramatized but fairly accurate interpretation of the explosion and its aftermath. In this list, we compare the show's cast to their real-life characters, and as you can see, they did a really great job.

11 PHOTOS

1. Jared Harris - Valery Legasov, scientist.

Valery Legasov was deputy director of the Kurchatov Institute of Atomic Energy and was part of the group responsible for investigating the Chernobyl accident. While those above him tried to hide the cause and extent of the disaster, Legasov tried to remain open and honest about what really happened. This affected him professionally and emotionally, and the day before the announcement of the results of the investigation, Legasov committed suicide. Eight years after his death, Legasov was awarded the Hero of the Russian Federation title by Russian President Boris Yeltsin in recognition of his courageous efforts, to tell the truth about Chernobyl.

2. Jessie Buckley as Lyudmila Ignatenko, Vasily's wife.

Lyudmila, the wife of firefighter Vasily Ignatenko, has faced a heartbreaking two weeks of watching her husband die in agony. She was pregnant at the time and ignored hospital orders to stay away from her lover, so when she gave birth a few months later, the baby died shortly after birth, diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver and congenital heart disease. It is believed that Lyudmila still lives in Ukraine.

3. Stellan Skarsgard - Boris Shcherbina, Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR.

In 1976, Shcherbina became a member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and retained this position until her death. In 1984, he became Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers and, as such, was responsible for overcoming the consequences of the Chernobyl disaster in 1986, acting as an observer for crisis management. Shcherbina died in Moscow in 1990, at the age of 70.

4. Sam Troughton - Alexander Akimov, shift supervisor of the Night Brigade.

Akimov was the shift supervisor on the night of the disaster. He died two weeks after the accident.

5. Adam Nagaitis - Vasily Ignatenko, Pripyat fireman.

Vasily Ignatenko, Lyudmila's husband, was one of the many firefighters who were the first to arrive at the site of the rooftop fire, unaware of the true extent of the situation. Face to face with the exposed reactor, Vasily and many of his colleagues were soon exposed to symptoms of radiation sickness, and he died in hospital two weeks later.

6. Biorobots.

The Chernobyl liquidators were civilian and military personnel who were called upon to deal with the consequences of the disaster on the spot. The liquidators are widely credited with limiting both the immediate and long-term damage of the disaster.

7. Paul Ritter - Anatoly Dyatlov, Deputy Chief Engineer for the operation of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant at the time of the disaster.

Anatoly Dyatlov was the deputy chief engineer who supervised the tests that led to the explosion. The moment the reactor power dropped to 30 MW, he insisted that the operators continue testing. He overrode Akimov and Toptunov's objections by threatening to hand over the shift to Tregub (the previous shift operator who remained in place), intimidating them. After the disaster, Dyatlov was sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in the bombing, but he was released after serving 5 years. In 1995, he died of heart failure.

8. David Denchik - Mikhail Gorbachev.

Gorbachev faced worldwide condemnation for not making an immediate announcement about the disaster, and it wasn't until 18 days later that he finally told the rest of the world exactly what happened at Chernobyl.

9. Con O'Neill - Viktor Bryukhanov, director of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.

Bryukhanov, the head of the plant, arrived at 2:30 am. Akimov reported a serious radiation accident. Due to the limitations of the tools available, they seriously underestimated the level of radiation. At 3 o'clock in the morning, Bryukhanov called Maryin, the deputy secretary for atomic energy, and gave Akimov's version of the situation. Maryin sent a message further up the chain of command to Frolyshev, who then summoned Vladimir Dolgikh, who summoned Gorbachev and other members of the Politburo. As director of the Chernobyl site, Bryukhanov was imprisoned for ten years but only served five years due to illness.

10. Ralph Ineson, General Nikolai Tarakanov, commander of the Chernobyl liquidators.

The commander of the Chernobyl liquidators, Tarakanov, gave inspiring and motivational speeches to the more than 3,000 liquidators who risked everything to clear the roof.

11. Adrian Rawlins - Nikolai Fomin, chief engineer.

After Dyatlov left, Fomin ordered Sitnikov, his replacement, to go up to the roof of Unit C and inspect the reactor; Sitnikov obeyed and received a lethal dose of radiation; at 10 o'clock he returned and informed Fomin and Bryukhanov that the reactor had been destroyed. They refused to believe him and ordered him to continue supplying water to the reactor; water, however, leaked through the cut pipes into the lower levels of the facility, carrying radioactive debris and causing short circuits. Later, before the trial, he had a mental breakdown and tried to commit suicide. Fomin broke his glasses and cut his wrists with shrapnel. The trial was delayed due to Fomin's mental breakdown, but he, along with Viktor Bryukhanov and Anatoly Dyatlov, was sentenced to 10 years in a labor camp. Like others, he did not serve his full sentence for health reasons, and it is not clear what happened to him after his release.