When the Russian Revolution occurred in October 1917, the Chaliapins attempted to continue living in Russia, but this became impossible, especially after the Bolsheviks reputedly confiscated his wealthy father's money and property.

Tired of living in his father's shadow in Paris, Chaliapin struck out on his own, moving to Hollywood to begin his film career — first in silent movies, in which his then-heavy accent could not be heard in the small bit parts he played.

Chaliapin is perhaps most remembered by modern audiences for the film The Name of the Rose (1986), in which he played the venerable blind abbot, Jorge de Burgos.

His last notable film role was as Professor Bartnev in The Inner Circle (1991), a true story about Soviet Russia under the dictatorship of Joseph Stalin.

In one of his briefest roles, Chaliapin dies in the arms of Gary Cooper in the opening scenes of For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943), based on Ernest Hemingway's 1940 novel.

Mikhail Gorbachev, the last General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, instituted political and economic reforms known as perestroika.