Russian actor Yura Borisovs nomination for an Oscar has been met with a muted and confused reaction in his home country as it has challenged the Kremlins long-standing narrative that the West is determined to cancel Russian culture.Borisov is up for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Sean Bakers Anora at the Academy Awards on March 2, making him the first Russian to be nominated in an acting category since the fall of the Soviet Union.But the recognition appears to have sown more confusion than elation and national pride among Russias elites and propaganda channels.While the Kremlin has largely declined to comment, pro-government figures have issued conflicting statements and state television the primary source of information for many Russians has responded with near-total silence.Fringe pro-Kremlin voices have even started floating conspiracy theories, including a claim that the United States is plotting to turn the actor into an opposition figure capable of challenging Vladimir Putin.Mixed reactionsFew pro-government figures reacted to Borisovs nomination with open enthusiasm.Congratulations on the nomination, wrote Tina Kandelaki, deputy head of Russias largest media conglomerate Gazprom Media and a vocal supporter of Russias invasion of Ukraine, in a post on the Telegram messaging app."Just wait and see, Yura! Stay strong, the biggest premieres are ahead, added Kandelaki, who is sanctioned by the United States Its always exciting to be the first.
Yura [Yury] Gagarin went to space, Yura Borisov to Hollywood.
I hope our Russian guy gets to hold that golden statuette,wrote Dmitry Gusev, a lawmaker from the pro-Kremlin A Just Russia party, before reminding his audience about alleged Russophobia in the West.But otherwise, the unexpected nomination of Borisov who has not publicly condemned the war in Ukraine, has previously starred in patriotic action films and continues to live and work in Russia has undermined Russias argument that the West seeks to erase Russian culture because of its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.This talking point is part of the wider pro-Kremlin propaganda narrative depicting Russia as a besieged fortress to demand loyalty from the population.When asked by reporters if Borisovs Oscar nomination was a signal that the Wests cancellation of Russian culture was over, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov simply replied No.The nomination itself is a significant achievement and a "huge reward," said Alexander Rodnyansky, a Kyiv-born, Oscar-nominated film producer who wassentenced in absentia to 8.5 years in Russian prison last year for criticizing the invasion of Ukraine.This is a slap in the face to [Russian] propaganda, said Rodnyansky, who produced dozens of TV series and films in Russia including the Oscar-nominated 2014 drama Leviathan.A Russian actor, and not even one of the so-called good Russians who fled the country, is receiving top international film awards.
And an Oscar nomination is a huge prize, he wrote on Telegram.TV silence and conspiracy theoriesThe paradox of the situation a prestigious nomination for a Russian actor on the one hand and the Kremlins need to maintain its narrative of Western hostility on the other led major state-controlled TV channels, including Channel One, Rossia 1 and NTV, to completely ignore the news.Only Channel 5 which is partially owned by a media group controlled by Putin ally Yury Kovalchuk dedicated a few minutes to the nomination in its weekly news segment, according to the independent Agentsvo news outlet.It seems they enjoy watching Russians who fit their stereotype rude, dull and uncultured.
Are we supposed to be happy about this? Or is it because theyre letting us back into their club, into their Hollywood paradise, even though it has been quite burned in recent months? the channels host said, referring to the wildfires that recently devastated Los Angeles.He dismissed the film as an example of klyukva a Russian term for a stereotypical, exaggerated portrayal of Russian culture that America still indulges in.Borisovs nomination generated even more discussion among political bloggers.Among the more bizarre takes was a conspiracy theory suggesting that the Oscar nomination was part of a United States plot to influence Russian politics by grooming Borisov as a future opponent to Putin.They want to turn Yura Borisov into Russias new opposition leader? Like [Ukrainian President] Volodymyr] Zelensky, from actor to president, according to the new Netflix politics playbook? The current deck of future Russian presidents is completely discredited,wrote political consultant Maria Sergeeva.