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In a recent appearance, star Jude Law stated he had no concerns about backlash for playing the Russian leader in a cinematic adaptation. This production, though, could coincide too neatly with the mythologized version promoted by official channels that, domestically, it reads as a compliment instead of a critique.

The Manufactured Superhero

For years, the Russian political apparatus and its pop-culture machine have worked together to craft a tailor-made persona of the president. This character is a political superhero devoid of flaws, an ex-intelligence officer reframed as a Russian James Bond who consistently understands more than he reveals.

“Domestically, the constructed Putin has long eclipsed the actual person.”

Cinematic Reinforcement

One recent example is a television show released last fall, directed by a Kremlin supporter. Its main character is a fictional security officer selected by fate to “save” Russia from disorder. While the character's name a different name, the implication is clear: the hero must be a known figure from the secret services.

Western portrayals frequently result in buttressing this same narrative rather than undercutting it. A new film based on a bestselling satirical novel sets out to undermine the leader's mythology by presenting him not as a cause but as a consequence, moving the focus to the political machinery around him.

The Fable of the Hesitant President

In the film, the president is shown as having been picked by influential figures to stabilise the nation because he is “young, athletic and a spy”. They visit him and practically plead him to become president. His response is that he would prefer to rule from the shadows, seeking permanent power.

This narrative is the Kremlin’s export myth: the detached, unwilling mastermind shaped by destiny. Historically, these events ever happened.

The Reality of the Casting Call

No one ever begged Putin to take the job. The position was in essence a casting call with no shortage of contenders. Central to this process stood a powerful businessman from the previous administration who expected to run the country de facto.

• The shortlist featured various figures, including an opposition leader later murdered and a security service director.
• Per a journalist who studied his rise, the future president simply fitted the necessary criteria: loyal, from the security services, and politically neutral.
• A property developer close to the events said the key criterion was controllability and loyalty, not strength.

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

Building the 007 Persona

Analysts concur that the image of him as a powerful KGB spy was constructed retrospectively. Claims about his clandestine activities in Dresden do not stand up to scrutiny. Fundamentally, he was an administrator and routine duties, a low-level clerk not involved with field operations.

Curiously, the move to depicting him as a “spy” could partly have been triggered by Daniel Craig’s debut as 007. His harder version led Russian media and online audiences to make comparisons with their leader. Edited images swapping the actor's likeness with his appeared on city centers, fueling the increasing trend to frame him as a Russian 007.

A Propaganda Win?

Given the casting, an star well-liked by Russian audiences, the authorities will not miss the chance to portray this choice as a small victory. Its omission of public dissent, the opposition, or prominent activists in the story, despite covering the past decade, is a pleasant bonus for state propaganda.

In Russian cinema, Putin is frequently an omnipotent figure who remains unseen directly. His influence is signaled through photographs or calls “from above”. Now, he at last gets a recognizable face—one that could unintentionally echo the very myths it might seek to examine.