Ukraine tore into HBO on Wednesday over a Serbian actor who allegedly supported Russia’s invasion being given a starring role in the third season of The White Lotus.
Miloš Biković, who was personally honored by Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2018 and received Russian citizenship three years ago, was confirmed earlier this month as joining the next series of the award-winning dark comedy. The 36-year-old was previously banned from entering Ukraine over national security concerns and has said that he’s filmed shows in Crimea—the Ukrainian peninsula illegally annexed by Russia.
“Miloš Biković, a Serbian actor with Russian citizenship who has been supporting Russia since the start of the full-scale invasion against Ukraine, gets Russian prizes for ‘service to Russia’s art and culture’, takes part in Russia’s TV shows in temporarily occupied Crimea, and now is set to star in HBO’s The White Lotus Season 3,” Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry captioned an Instagram post Wednesday featuring a mocked up image of the actor wearing a sign reading “Genocide Supporter” around his neck.
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Tagging HBO, the post added: “[I]s it all right for you to work with a person who supports genocide & violates international law?” HBO has not immediately commented on the matter.
In 2018, Putin gave Biković Russia’s Pushkin Medal—one of the country’s highest cultural honors—in a Kremlin ceremony. He was given Russian citizenship by presidential decree in 2021, with the actor publicly celebrating his new status on Instagram.
“It is a great honor that today I can say: Russia is my Motherland!” Biković wrote at the time. “I have been actively participating in Russian cultural life for more than 7 years. For me it’s a blessing and the source of happiness.” He added that his citizenship had been “officially signed by the President” and vowed to “keep working to bring our peoples closer together through culture.”
