By Olivier Acuña Barba •
Published: 25 Aug 2025 • 23:09
• 2 minutes read
Woody Allen draws harsh criticism and even backlash from many, including Ukraine | Credit: Lucky Team Studio/Shutterstock
The globally renowned filmmaker and actor Woody Allen took part in a Q&A with a pro-Vladimir Putin director. He also appeared at the Moscow International Film Week, drawing backlash from Ukraine and many others.
The Oscar-winning producer, 89, took part in the event via a video link and not in person, and participated in an interview with Russian director Fyodor Bondarchuk, according to Euro News. The festival’s website described the slot as an “atmosphere of a confidential dialogue” to allow attendees to “touch the inner world of the director, understand how stories are born that remain in culture for decades, and hear thoughts that rarely appear in public.”
Allen took the opportunity to express his admiration for Russian cinema and stated during the conversation that AI would never be able to write on the level of Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s books. The appearance put him at odds with the Hollywood establishment, which has embraced the Ukraine cause during Russia’s 42-month war, with prominent actors signing on to the United24 crowdfunding initiative and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy making virtual appearances at past Golden Globes and Grammys ceremonies, according to AP.
‘A disgrace and an insult’
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry in an online statement on Monday, August 25, said that it “strongly condemns” Allen’s participation in the festival, which “brings together supporters and mouthpieces of Putin.”
The ministry called it “a disgrace and an insult to the victims among Ukrainian actors and filmmakers who have been killed or wounded by Russian war criminals,” adding that Allen “is deliberately turning a blind eye to the atrocities that Russia has been committing in Ukraine.”
In a statement to The Associated Press on Monday, Allen criticised Putin and denounced the invasion but called for cultural exchange to continue. “When it comes to the conflict in Ukraine, I believe strongly that Vladimir Putin is totally in the wrong. The war he has caused is appalling,” Allen said. “But, whatever politicians have done, I don’t feel cutting off artistic conversations is ever a good way to help.”
Marek Magierowski, Director, Strategy for Poland Programme at the Freedom Institute (think tank), said Allen is “A great film director. And a morally corrupt human being.” Woody was the target of many more negative comments on X.
