Christo Jivkov

Christo Jivkov^[a] (Bulgarian: Христо Живков; 18 February 1975 – 31 March 2023) was a Bulgarian actor. He first gained recognition for portraying Giovanni delle Bande Nere in the period drama The Profession of Arms (2001), and later became better known for his leading role as St. John in Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ (2004).

Christo Jivkov
Христо Живков
Born	(1975-02-18)18 February 1975 Sofia, Bulgaria
Died	31 March 2023(2023-03-31) (aged 48) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupations	Actor filmmaker
Years active	2001–2019

Jivkov also appeared in numerous Italian films and television shows, including The Good War (2002), Eyes of Crystal (2004), The Inquiry (2006), The Lark Farm (2007), David's Birthday, Barbarossa (both 2009), The Invisible Boy (2014) and Lucania (2019).

Life and career

Jivkov was born 18 February 1975 in Sofia, Bulgaria. Shortly after graduating from the National Academy for Theatre and Film Arts where he majored in film directing, he was cast in the role of Giovanni de Medici in Ermanno Olmi's 2001 film The Profession of Arms, which won nine awards at the 2002 David di Donatello Awards, including Best Film. In 2003, Jivkov starred in Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ alongside Jim Caviezel and Monica Bellucci. The film achieved success at the box office, grossing $612 million worldwide.^[2]

Jivkov was the co-founder of the Bulgarian production company Red Carpet Films.^[3]

Death

Jivkov died from lung cancer on 31 March 2023, at the age of 48, in Los Angeles. Tributes were paid by his friends and colleagues Mel Gibson, Maria Grazia Cucinotta and Dessy Tenekedjieva, among others.^[4][5]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2001	The Profession of Arms	Giovanni de Medici
2002	The Good War	Gartner's son
2004	The Passion of the Christ	St. John
	Eyes of Crystal	Detective Di Fusco
2006	The Inquiry	Stephen
2007	The Lark Farm	Sarkis
2009	David's Birthday	Leonard
	Barbarossa	Gherardo Negro
2014	The Invisible Boy	Andreij
2019	Lucania	Christo

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1996	I ragazzi del muretto	Student	Episode: A scuola d'amore
2016	VIP Brother	Himself	Season 8

As filmmaker

• Druids (2001), assistant director
• The Profit (2001), assistant director
• Julius Caesar (2003), assistant director
• Tears of the Motherland (2007), associate producer
• Holy Light (2010), producer
• Black & White in Color (2012), associate producer
• Alienation (2013), executive producer

Notes

1. His name is also sometimes transliterated as Hristo Zhivkov.^[1]