Russian defense minister Sergei Shoigu is calling for his country to ban the comedy work of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy following the invasion of Ukraine.
The Russian investigative news website The Insider released a letter on Friday that they claim was sent by Shoigu to Russian Minister of Culture Olga Lyubimova asking for the film and television work of Zelenskyy and Ukrainian-born producer Alexander Rodnyansky to be "removed from the cultural agenda of the Russian Federation," according to a translation provided to The Hollywood Reporter by a Russian source.
Shoigu wrote, "as part of a special operation, the Ministry of Defense is taking measures to shape a positive public opinion of Russian citizens in support of the country leaders and the actions of the Russian armed forces.
"At the same time, in the cultural sector of the Russian media space, films and TV programs with the participation of V.A. Zelensky continue to be shown, as do the creative projects of a major Ukrainian media manager, A.E. Rodnyansky. Popularization of these persons in the current conditions does not contribute to the implementation of decisions taken by the country leaders and the Russian Ministry of Defense.
"Taking into account the above, I ask you to work through an issue about the exclusion of V.A. Zelensky and A.E. Rodnyansky from the cultural agenda of the Russian Federation."
In a text message statement to the Hollywood Reporter, Rodnyansky said that he knew of the letter and said it's "interesting that a Russian minister responsible for running the war in Ukraine took the time to single out me and Volodymyr Zelensky and write an actual letter to the Minister of Culture. Formally, this will have no effect on my projects. There is no way I would ever take money from [the] Russian state after February 24," when the invasion of Ukraine began.
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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