🔗 Share this article

Last year, star Jude Law stated he had no concerns about backlash for portraying the Russian leader in a cinematic adaptation. The movie, though, could coincide too neatly with the carefully constructed image circulated by Russian state media that, within Russia, it functions as a compliment instead of a challenge.

The Crafted Strongman

Over a long period, the Kremlin and its pop-culture machine have worked together to craft a tailor-made version of Putin. This character is a political superhero without age or mistakes, a former spy reframed as a local 007 who consistently understands more than he reveals.

“In Russia, the constructed Putin has long eclipsed the actual person.”

Screen-Based Support

One recent example is a television show launched last fall, helmed by a Kremlin supporter. Its main character is a fictional blue-eyed lieutenant colonel inexplicably chosen to “rescue” Russia from disorder. While he is called a different name, the message is unmistakable: the savior must be a familiar security officer.

Western portrayals frequently result in buttressing this identical story instead of undercutting it. An adaptation based on a bestselling satirical novel aims to undermine the Putin cult by presenting him not as a cause but as a symptom, shifting the narrative weight to the spin doctors surrounding him.

The Myth of the Reluctant Leader

On screen, Putin is shown as having been picked by powerful oligarchs to steady the nation because he is “young, athletic and a spy”. They visit him and practically plead him to take the top job. His response is that he would rather govern from the background, desiring permanent power.

This narrative is a key piece of state propaganda: the detached, unwilling mastermind guided by fate. Historically, none of this ever happened.

The Truth Behind the Selection

No one actually pleaded with him to take the job. The presidency was effectively a casting call with no shortage of contenders. At the centre to this process stood an influential oligarch from the previous administration who expected to run the state de facto.

• The shortlist included various figures, among them a reformer later murdered and a former spy chief.
• Per an expert who studied his rise, the chosen candidate merely met the required parameters: loyal, from the intelligence world, and politically neutral.
• A businessman close to the process said the key criterion was controllability and loyalty, not leadership.

“The goal wasn't a powerful leader, they needed someone malleable, someone who would follow instructions.”

Building the 007 Persona

Analysts concur that the image of him as a powerful KGB spy was built after the fact. Stories about his clandestine activities in East Germany do not stand up to scrutiny. In essence, he was an administrator and routine duties, a low-level clerk not engaged in field operations.

Curiously, the move to framing him as a “spy” may in part have been inspired by the actor's arrival as 007. The grittier interpretation prompted Russian media and social media to draw visual parallels with their leader. Edited images replacing the actor's likeness with Putin’s surfaced on Moscow streets, feeding the growing tendency to frame him as a Russian 007.

A Propaganda Win?

Given the casting, an actor popular with viewers there, the Kremlin are likely to seize the chance to frame his casting as a minor diplomatic triumph. The film's exclusion of mass protests, the opposition, or key figures in the story, despite covering the past decade, is a welcome aspect for official messaging.

Domestically, Putin is frequently an omnipotent figure who remains unseen on screen. He is hinted at through photographs or orders from on high. Now, he finally acquires a recognizable face—one that could unintentionally validate the exact legends it perhaps aims to question.