In 1963, Mikhail Kononov graduated from the Shchepkin Drama School and was admitted to the Maly Theatre.

The typical image of his hero, a simple-hearted, kind and unaffected fellow, started taking its shape in his debut film Our Common Friend (1961) and further on in the revolutionary tragic comedy Chief of Chukotka (1966), the war drama No Path Through Fire (1967), the heroic comedy At War as at War, among others.

One of the most popular films starring Mikhail Kononov was the series Big School-Break (1972), where he played the young teacher Nestor Petrovich.

Many Russian viewers remember Kononov as the sly and crafty space pirate Krys in the legendary children's sci-fi miniseries Guest from the Future (1985).

[2] In the last years of his life Mikhail Kononov rejected most of the roles offered to him due to his dislike of modern Russian cinema.