Long-time actor Vesa Vierikko, 69, recently made big decisions regarding his life. The time of endings is precious to him, because happy new beginnings sprout with it.
An acting legend Vesa Vierikko turns 70 next year. It’s a milestone that matters to him.
Vierikko has made two big decisions very recently. With them, he hopes to be able to increase his well-being and generally enjoy life more.
– I stopped smoking seven weeks ago, he tells Iltalehte.
The actor, who has smoked regularly for 55 years, says that he thought about quitting for a while. However, it is difficult to give up old habits, he laments.
– Every once in a while at night when I noticed something and woke up, the thought came to mind that I should stop such an annoyingly expensive and stupid hobby. It’s not even healthy.
But he did nothing.
Vierikko says he was waiting for the right moment, and a certain kind of sign from the universe. It came at the Kangasalan cottage, when he was hanging out with his brother on the terrace.
– I lit a cigarette, but it didn’t light. Then I tried to turn it on again and it wouldn’t turn on. I tried a third time and it didn’t work. A drop of water had fallen on the end of that cigarette, Vesa Vierikko describes the mystical moment.
The repetition of the matter three times was enough to convince the superstitious actor.
– The higher forces said to stop already. I put a cigarette on the lighter and took a couple of photos of it as a memory. Then it stopped. I gave five big packs of cigarettes to my brother and told him to have them.
He is extremely satisfied with his decision.
According to Vieriko, no one can avoid the effects of age.
– There are all kinds of ailments and pains, but I’m used to living with them. The healing of the body is slow, if it even happens. When you can’t walk long distances anymore, everything starts to wither. I’ve never run, he says and looks into his eyes.
– I decided sometime in my twenties that I wouldn’t take a running step. Many things have gone right in front of our noses.
Vierikko says that he has always been early everywhere, so that he can be late for the trolley if he wants to.
An important career stage
Another important decision is related to self-reliance: Vesa Vierikko will stop acting in the theater.
– I will play my last role at the National Theatre The Second Republic in the play. I have promised to do this again. After that, I won’t go on the stage of the theater anymore, he says.
The premiere of the show will take place on the Suurella odtämää on February 12, 2026.
Vierikko wants free time.
– I have a pension and I could spend it, so I don’t understand why I just go and do it all the time. And there aren’t so many years of dancing here anymore, he refers to his age.
– I’ve had enough of fooling around and acting on stage.
He says that he no longer wants long, binding work clothes.
– It is an old truth that when there is a show in the evening, the day is ruined. You can’t do anything or go anywhere. You can’t improvise at all in life. It’s punctual! He’s upset.
Vierikko has carried out his long and varied theater career with the attitude of a dunian, not caring about unnecessary frills.
– To its creator, it’s just fluff. However, the job of an actor is fun, it’s a game. Dunes made with a camera are extremely nice because when they’re done, they’re done.
So the legend plans to continue working on TV and film roles, whenever he feels like it.
Vierikko says that he loves doing things with his hands. Pete Anikari
The rest of the time he spends usefully in his Kangasalan cabin, where he spends the winter, where, according to the actor, there is enough work to do. That’s what he loves.
– I build, repair and design. That’s what I want to do. Recover everything from waste wood, and you can make birdhouses out of it, he says.
– I have already done many.
There are plenty of corners to fix in every direction, it’s enough to roll the dice to see where you can start cleaning next.
– It also depends on what the weather is like, whether you do interior or exterior repairs. Grandchildren are also welcome to the cottage to meet papa!
In his own peace, the conkar can philosophize and reflect on the events of society, and he does not deny the poor job prospects in his field. Even though the current government canceled some of its planned cuts in the cultural sector, Vesa Vierikko is not warmed by it.
– The situation of young actors and industry creators is sad. They don’t get on the road to development. This is a field that can only be learned by doing.
And it won’t be possible without new projects.
– But I would say that being depressed doesn’t help, it just stops you. Yes, you have to get the joy out of this, even if the backpack is wet!
Christmas can come
At Christmas time, Vesa Vierikko wants to rest in his home in Helsinki, where the whole large Vierikko clan gathers. According to him, looking at the offspring makes you feel moved.
Vieriko has four adult children from a previous relationship, and three teenage children from her husband, a doctor of social sciences Kati Vierikon with. There are already seven grandchildren.
– I always feel something warm and laugh when I see that I am responsible for everyone, he grins.
He says that for the father of a large family, Christmas has been a difficult time because he has always had to try to be fair when it comes to gifts.
– Now that they are adults and young, it’s enough for me to give each of them an apple.
He plans to package the apples to maintain a certain tension.
After Christmas, Vierikko plans to head somewhere other than the cabin.
From November 14, Vieriko can also be seen Browniein a Christmas movie called Rääpäkkä, where he plays an old elf named Rääpäkkä.
The role was different from what he originally prepared for. Even more special was the new linguistic territorial conquest: the film was shown in English and the Actors dubbed their own roles in Finnish.
– I haven’t terribly acted in English, and I’ve never dubbed before myself. It was damn hard to learn English, he laughs.
He says he used Google Translate to help him and learned the “London accent” from TV.
– I haven’t studied any text as long as this one, he updates.
Vieriko’s smile says that it must have been fun after all.