{"id":739288,"date":"2026-07-02T16:58:16","date_gmt":"2026-07-02T16:58:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/739288\/"},"modified":"2026-07-02T16:58:16","modified_gmt":"2026-07-02T16:58:16","slug":"empire-state-building-skywalkers-released-from-jail-new-court-date-set","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/739288\/","title":{"rendered":"Empire State Building Skywalkers Released From Jail, New Court Date Set"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tUPDATE July 2 throughout: Ivan \u201cVanya\u201d Beerkus and Angela Nikolau, the subjects of Netflix\u2019s 2024 documentary Skywalkers: A Love Story<\/a> who climbed to the needle-top of the Empire State Building<\/a> Wednesday for an attention-getting betrothment, have been given supervised release following a brief appearance in Manhattan Criminal Court this morning.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe couple \u2013 he under his legal name Ivan Kuznetsov \u2013 appeared in court for arraignment wearing the same black outfits they wore during their daredevil stunt Wednesday. They did not enter a plea on formal charges of reckless endangerment, burglary, criminal mischief and others, though the couple\u2019s lawyer reportedly said that the district attorney\u2019s office \u201covercharged.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBeerkus and Nilolau were given a supervised release until their next court date on August 24. The local ABC 7 newscast quoted the judge as saying, \u201cWe will do supervised release. We will do it at a low level.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tLocal newscasts also showed the couple sharing a kiss as they entered the Chambers Street subway station after leaving courthouse.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe couple spent the first night of their engagement in separate holding cells at New York City\u2019s 100 Centre Street, location of the Manhattan Criminal Court. <\/p>\n

\n\tExactly how the Russian natives, whose current address is in East Orange, New Jersey, about 30 miles west of NYC, gained access to the supposedly secure tourist attraction for their stunt is the subject of considerable official scrutiny. Officials told ABC News that the daredevils might have used a worker entrance to avoid the usual visitor screening process.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe couple, whose stunt set off a police action and commandeered airtime on local and national news channels, later revealed themselves to be Beerkus and Nikolau, stars of Netflix\u2019s 2024 documentary Skywalkers: A Love Story.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe stunt was not being filmed in any official connection with the show or with Netflix, Deadline reported Wednesday, though apparently the streamer wasn\u2019t above a little opportunity-knocks cross promotion: Netflix posted a promo for the documentary on X Wednesday afternoon. \u2013 see it below.<\/p>\n

\n\tDressed in black and carrying a banner reading \u201cWhen the power of love beats the love of power, the world knows peace,\u201d the couple got engaged in the perch high atop the city. The quote on the sign has often been attributed to classic rock star Jimi Hendrix, although whether he ever actually said it remains a matter of some dispute.<\/p>\n

\n\tOn their Instagram page (see it below), the couple posted photos in which Beerkus is on one knee with his left hand over his heart and his right hand holding what appears to be a ring. In another photo, Nikolau displays her newly be-ringed hand, and in yet another pic the two show their hands with pinkies entwined.<\/p>\n

\n\tSources tell Deadline that the stunt had nothing to do with the documentary, and that it was not being filmed for any official purpose related to the show.<\/p>\n

\n\tNetflix declined comment, as did the NYPD.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tThe skywalking couple briefly joined other top news stories today<\/p>\n

\n\tSkywalkers: A Love Story, the 2024 doc directed by\u00a0Jeff Zimbalist\u00a0and co-directed by Maria Bukhonina, chronicles the adventures of the Russian couple Nikolau and Beerkus, known as \u201crooftoppers\u201d who scale skyscrapers and other heights, usually without permission and often illegally. The film premiered at the\u00a02024 Sundance Film Festival.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tYou can watch the Skywalkers trailer below.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you fell, I lifted you. When I fell, you lifted me.\u201d <\/p>\n

Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus climbing the second-tallest building in the world in SKYWALKERS: A LOVE STORY (2024). pic.twitter.com\/AJNc6A2QRe<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Netflix (@netflix) July 1, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n