A Russian man who won a string of acting and advertising roles as a Leonardo DiCaprio lookalike has been sent to fight in Ukraine.
Roman Burtsev, 41, won modelling gigs playing the Hollywood star but then saw the work drop off.
The doppelgänger from Russia was initially hit by the pandemic when he put on too much weight to be convincing as DiCaprio.
His weight has been an issue since 2016 when he started cloning the actor despite 100lbs extra bulk.
He had hoped that his role as a DiCaprio lookalike would bring him fame, fortune – and a wife and children.
But before going to fight at the front in Ukraine, the lonely Russian DiCaprio still lived with his parents and a cat in a rented state-provided flat in Podolsk, near Moscow.
Burtsev has been unable to reprise his former role as the Russian face of the 49-year-old American – and was instead ordered to fight in the war in Ukraine like many unemployed men his age.
He had been reduced to odd jobs at a marketplace and hardware store, but was short of money.
Putin’s military recruitment is notorious for sending men to their deaths as ‘cannon fodder.’
But fighting in the armed forces in Ukraine pays well above the going rate because the dictator is so desperate to recruit new soldiers.
By signing a contract and undergoing training he is entitled to for a £16,000 payment, which is followed by £1,625 a month while he remains alive on the frontline.
(Picture: Social media/east2west news)
If he is killed in combat, his family could qualify for up to £99,000.
Previously, he has worked as an IT specialist.
Putin launched the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Kyiv has been putting pressure on the US to allow it to fire British-made Storm Shadow missiles into Russian territory.
America has provided Ukraine with ATACMS, a ground-launched ballistic missile, but has prevented them from being used in cross-border strikes into Russia itself.
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