[2] Irina was the second child in the family; her older brother Valery later became a jazz composer and pianist in the United States.

Apeksimova's parents divorced when she was in the eighth grade, and she moved with her mother to Odessa, where she studied acting.

After this setback, Irina returned to Volgograd and joined the Theater of Musical Comedy, in the corps de ballet.

After living in Volgograd for a year, Apeksimova had shed much of her Odessa accent, and applied for a third time to the Moscow Art Theater School.

In addition to her many roles in Russian films, Apeksimova played in the 1997 Hollywood Val Kilmer vehicle The Saint.