Sean Penn lashes out at Vladimir Putin, calls him ‘creepy little bully’ after Berlin premiere of documentary ‘Superpower’

Washington [US], February 18 (ANI): Sean Penn said he was happy to be a “propagandist” for the Ukrainian war effort and called Russian President Vladimir Putin a “creepy little bully” on Saturday in Berlin, after the world premiere of his documentary “Superpower” which upholds a bold portrayal of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

“This is not an unbiased film because this is not an ambiguous war,” he said, calling the conflict “extremely personal.” “I’m very happy to be considered a propagandist. I was happy to make an unbiased film because that is the true story we found,” reported Variety.

Donning a black jacket and hoodie and sporting a camouflage trucker cap, Penn repeatedly called on the Biden administration to send precision, long-range missiles to Kyiv to support the Ukrainian war effort.

Praising the courage of Zelenskyy, Penn lashed out at his Russian counterpart when asked if the filmmakers wanted to hear from Putin, who he described as a “war criminal.”

“It was quite clear to us that we were not going to allow our film to be a podium for transparent deception,” he said. “I think we would have been better served talking to a wall.”

“Superpower,” which Penn co-directed with Aaron Kaufman and is produced by Vice, met with a standing ovation Friday night in Berlin, after its premiere out of competition as a Berlinale Special Gala, reported Variety.

The film follows the Hollywood star as he travels across Ukraine in the months before the Russian invasion and then lands a series of sit-down interviews with Zelenskyy once the war begins. During their conversations, the war-time president reveals his frustrations at the lack of support in the form of high-impact weapons received from the Biden administration.

In a post-screening Q&A, Penn echoed Zelenskyy’s concerns. “It’s not so much about what if Ukraine loses, because they won’t, but … if Russia wins, we are all fd. Just dead-set fd,” Penn told the crowd. “As Americans, I can say we’re going to have to take on board a level of shame for not having scaled up sooner with the weapons.”