SIMFEROPOL, July 28. /ITAR-TASS/. French movie star and Russian citizen Gerard Depardieu will not oversee winemaking in Crimea, the acting head of the Black Sea republic said on Monday.

“I respect Gerard Depardieu as a professional actor. But unfortunately I don’t know anything about his winemaking experience,” Sergey Aksyonov said.

Russian State Duma deputy Igor Zotov has proposed putting Depardieu, who owns several vineyards in France and other countries, in charge of the Crimean wine production, Russian media reported earlier on Monday.

Aksyonov said the actor's professional advice and ideas could be useful but the region's chief winemaker would be selected among local residents.

Depardieu, who was granted Russian citizenship in January 2013, announced plans in mid-July to produce a 'bio-vodka' under his brand.

“This will be my first experience in producing strong drinks, and I hope it will be successful. However, I would like to see more people preferring wine to other beverages,” he said.