Daredevils Illegally Climbed the Empire State Building, Got Engaged, and Unfurled a Flag Reading: “When the Power of Love Beats the Love of Power, the World Knows Peace”
Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus, the Russian rooftopping couple from the 2024 Netflix documentary “Skywalkers: A Love Story,” scaled the top of the Empire State Building this morning, dressed in black with helmets and masks.
Atop the Empire State Building in New York City, two people unfurl a banner on July 1, 2026. Photo via REUTERS.
Angela wore cat ears. They unfurled a black banner reading “when the power of love beats the love of power the world knows peace,” a line commonly attributed to Jimi Hendrix.
New York’s Empire State Building stands tall in Manhattan on July 1, 2026, after two daredevils scaled its spire in an unauthorized climb. Photo by Adam Gray / REUTERS.
They did it on the 1,454-foot antenna spire, no ropes, no harnesses, hundreds of feet above the observation deck. Angela, 33, trained in rhythmic gymnastics from age 7 and grew up in a family of circus performers. Ivan, 32, was already climbing the Eiffel Tower and Moscow skyscrapers solo before the two teamed up in 2016 on Goldin Finance 117 in Tianjin, a climb that turned them into a couple.
Passersby near Madison Square Garden crane their necks toward the Empire State Building on July 1, 2026, the day two climbers scaled the skyscraper and unfurled a peace banner at its peak. Photo by Timothy A. Clary / AFP via Getty Images.
Angela posted a video from the narrow platform late morning, captioned “Currently at the Empire State Building.” Just after 12:30 p.m., they climbed down to a wider metal ledge, where Ivan dropped to a knee and pulled out a ring while the city looked up. They kissed on the summit. Around 1:00 p.m., they posted photos and videos to Instagram and Facebook identifying themselves as the climbers.
Atop the Empire State Building in New York City, two people unfurl a banner on July 1, 2026, in a still from video. Photo via REUTERS.
The Netflix doc is the reason anyone knows their names. Directed by Jeff Zimbalist, “Skywalkers: A Love Story” premiered at Sundance in January 2024 and hit Netflix that July, opening on a warning that the film contains “extremely dangerous and illegal activities.”
Ivan Beerkus and Angela Nikolau step out together for the Tribeca Film Festival premiere of their Netflix documentary at AMC Lincoln Square Theater in New York City on June 12, 2024. Photo by Jason Mendez / Getty Images.
It climaxes on the 2,200-foot spire of Merdeka 118 in Malaysia, a climb that took over 30 hours and required them to hide from construction crews for a full day. The film hit the top 10 in more than two dozen countries and left the central question open: can two people actually build a life together when a single mistake kills them both?
A banner unfurls from atop the Empire State Building in New York City on July 1, 2026, as two people stage a protest on the iconic skyscraper. Photo by Adam Gray / Reuters.
After the release, they moved to New York. Angela started painting. Ivan started making music. They run an online pet products store and told Netflix’s Tudum they were “living a dream” and had started to “believe in magic.” Asked when they’d stop climbing, Angela said “when I’m 75.”
A helicopter passes by the Empire State Building in New York City on July 1, 2026, the same day two climbers scaled the iconic skyscraper and unfurled a peace banner near its summit. Photo by Angela Weiss / AFP via Getty Images.Atop the Empire State Building’s spire on July 1, 2026, two climbers unfurl a banner bearing a peace message in New York City. Photo by Timothy A. Clary / AFP via Getty Images.
They’ve been picked up before, at Notre Dame and after Merdeka 118, and have hidden from security for more than 30 hours at a stretch to pull a climb off. Fame from the film made it harder. They’re recognized on sight now and banned from some European sites, and they keep going anyway.
NYPD took them into custody once they came down. Charges are pending.
At AMC Lincoln Square Theater in New York City, Maria Bukhonina, Ivan Beerkus, and Angela Nikolau were on hand June 12, 2024, for the Tribeca Film Festival premiere of Netflix’s Skywalkers: A Love Story. Photo by Jason Mendez / Getty Images.
Thank you for reading. Catch all of Thought Catalog’s latest on Facebook and our website.
Books connect our company’s digital roots with our love of traditional book publishing. Our books are designed as beloved art pieces. We publish work we love.
