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Last year, star Jude Law stated he had no concerns about backlash for portraying the Russian leader in a new film. This production, however, may align so closely with the carefully constructed image circulated by Russian state media that, within Russia, it reads as a endorsement instead of a critique.

The Crafted Superhero

For years, the Russian political apparatus and the country's entertainment industry have collaborated to craft a tailor-made version of the president. This figure is an infallible strategist without age or mistakes, an ex-intelligence officer reframed as a local 007 who always knows beyond what he shows.

“In Russia, the manufactured Putin has long overshadowed the real one.”

Cinematic Reinforcement

One recent example is a TV series released last fall, directed by a pro-government filmmaker. The protagonist is a invented blue-eyed lieutenant colonel selected by fate to “rescue” Russia from disorder. Although the character's name Mikhail, the message is unmistakable: the hero must be a familiar security officer.

International depictions often end up buttressing this same narrative rather than undercutting it. An adaptation based on a popular book sets out to undermine the Putin cult by presenting him as a symptom but as a consequence, shifting the narrative weight to the spin doctors surrounding him.

The Fable of the Hesitant President

On screen, the president is presented as having been picked by powerful oligarchs to stabilise the country because he is “a fit former intelligence agent”. They visit him and all but beg him to become president. His response is that he would prefer to rule from the shadows, desiring enduring influence.

This narrative is the Kremlin’s export myth: the cool, reluctant strategist guided by fate. Historically, none of this ever happened.

The Reality of the Casting Call

No one ever begged him to accept the role. The presidency was in essence a selection process with many contenders. At the centre to this process stood an influential oligarch from the previous administration who planned to control the country de facto.

• The shortlist included various figures, including an opposition leader subsequently assassinated and a security service director.
• According to an expert who studied his rise, the future president merely met the required parameters: loyal, from the intelligence world, and politically neutral.
• A businessman close to the process said the primary requirement was controllability and loyalty, not leadership.

“They didn’t need a powerful leader, they needed someone malleable, someone who would obey orders.”

Constructing the Spy Legend

Analysts concur that the image of Putin as a powerful KGB spy was built after the fact. Claims about his “recruitment work” in Dresden do not stand up to scrutiny. In essence, he was an administrator and routine duties, a mid-level functionary not involved with actual agent work.

Curiously, the move to framing him as a “spy” may in part have been inspired by the actor's arrival as 007. His harder interpretation prompted local outlets and online audiences to draw visual parallels with their leader. Edited images replacing Craig’s face with Putin’s surfaced on Moscow streets, fueling the increasing trend to see him as a Russian 007.

A Propaganda Win?

Given the casting, an actor well-liked by viewers there, the authorities are likely to seize the opportunity to portray this choice as a small victory. The film's omission of public dissent, the political rivals, or key figures from its narrative, despite covering the past decade, is a welcome aspect for official messaging.

In Russian cinema, the president is frequently an omnipotent figure who remains unseen on screen. His influence is hinted at through portraits or orders from on high. In this new film, he at last gets a recognizable face—one that could unintentionally validate the very myths it perhaps aims to question.