Sheepshead Bay Cabbie Alexander Sokovikov Plays Russian Ambassador At Center Of House Of Cards Story Arc

A Sheepshead Bay cabbie is turning heads as a fictional Russian ambassador at the center of a five-episode story arc on the hit Netflix series House of Cards.

Alexander Sokovikov, a 40-year-old Russian immigrant who lives in the neighborhood with his wife and 16-year-old son, landed the role of his career (so far) late last year, after originally auditioning to play the part of the Russian president, based on Vladimir Putin.

Sokovikov moved to the United States in 1990, but returned to Russian to study acting. He found some success there on Russian TV before coming to Brooklyn, renting a cab and auditioning in his off-time.

His return was well-timed, as international intrigue between the US and the motherland began dominating headlines, a turn that inevitably would be reflected in American media.

“It just happened that Russia started behaving ridiculously internationally, which gives creative people a lot of substance to work with,” he told the New York Post. “If you talk about luck, I was lucky to be in New York when Putin started acting like a dumb f - - k . . . when they were looking for people to pass for Russian.”

Sokovikov, who fancies himself a Russian Ed Norton, is already gaining props for his role in what’s being described as House of Cards’ best scene to-date. As the Russian ambassador, he spars with First Lady Claire Underwood (Robin Wright). She invites a smug Sokovikov into the ladies’ room and forces him to stand at the ready while she dolls herself up, urinates, and ultimately tells him that he’s been outdone.

When filming on the show wrapped up in December, he returned to his job as a cabbie – where he’s not getting his much-deserved esteem from colleagues.

“At my job? You think taxi drivers watch ‘House of Cards’? Listen, taxi people are lucky enough to be able to speak English,” he told the Post.

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