U.S. actor and Russian propagandist Steven Seagal said in a new documentary released on Oct. 10 that he was ready to fight for Russian President Vladimir Putin and "die if need be."
Seagal, who gained fame as an action star in the 1980s and 1990s, became enamored with Russia and Putin as his Hollywood career waned. He has nonetheless continued to make a long string of low-budget, direct-to-TV films.
The actor and martial artist gained Russian citizenship in 2016, and was subsequently named by Russia's Foreign Ministry as a "Special Representative for Russia-U.S. Cultural Links, Cultural and Historical Heritage in a voluntary capacity" in 2018. He reportedly relocated to Moscow in 2021 to escape fines from the U.S. government. Seagal has also been accused of sexual assault by multiple women.
Seagal has repeatedly praised Russia since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine and was one of the few Western "celebrities" to attend Putin's inauguration to his fifth term in office in May 2024.
In Seagal's new documentary, entitled "In the Name of Justice" and shared on the Russian state-run media platform Smotrim, he is shown visiting various occupied territories of Ukraine, including Mariupol.
Seagal is also shown speaking to civilians and sharing Kremlin propaganda talking points with the help of a translator and voiceover, as he does not appear to speak Russian. He also visits Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs), purported to be Azov fighters.
In one clip, Seagal says that he wrote a letter to Putin, saying, "now we will see who are our true compatriots and friends, and who are our enemies. I will be on the side of my president and I will fight on the side of my president."
There is no indication that the 72-year-old Seagal will actually participate in any military activities, combat or otherwise.
Dominic Culverwell
(Updated: )
