Ukraine hits out at HBO for casting pro-kremlin actor
UKRAINE has hit out at HBO for casting a pro-russia actor in its new season of The White Lotus, calling him a supporter of “genocide”.
The US broadcaster announced earlier this month that the Serbian actor Milos Bikovic would star in the acclaimed comedy-drama’s third outing, set in Thailand, with filming due to start in February. It was met with fury by Kyiv, who said Bikovic had supported Russia’s bloody invasion of their country and accepted awards from Vladimir Putin having acquired Russian citizenship three years ago.
“Milos Bikovic, Serbian actor who has been supporting Russia since the start of the full-scale invasion, is now set to star in HBO’S The White Lotus
Season 3,” the Ukrainian foreign ministry said in a post on Twitter.
“@hbo, is it alright for you to work with a person who supports genocide and violates international law?”
An accompanying video made by the foreign ministry accused the actor of being “the Kremlin’s foreign mouth piece”, saying he had attempted to justify the “hostile seizure” of Crimea and eastern Ukraine by Russian forces. It quoted Bikovic as saying “Russia has accepted me since my first time here ... I have inherited Russian values and they resonate with mine,” he reportedly said.
The 36-year-old actor has starred in a number of Russian films, with Ukraine accusing him of taking part in productions that were filmed in Crimea after its annexation by Moscow in 2014. At a Kremlin ceremony in 2018, Putin awarded him the Pushkin Medal, one of Russia’s top cultural prizes, for his work in promoting the country’s culture. When he was awarded Russian citizenship by presidential decree in 2021, Bikovic said: “It is a great honour to say today: Russia is my homeland.”
He has previously praised cultural and historical links between Serbia and Russia.
The Telegraph contacted HBO for comment.