In early 2026, “The Wizard of the Kremlin” — the long-anticipated film about Vladimir Putin and his inner circle — hit theaters. Directed by French filmmaker Olivier Assayas, the drama revolves around the Russian president and a fictional political strategist named Vadim Baranov, based on the former Kremlin ideologue Vladislav Surkov. Jude Law plays Putin, and Paul Dano plays Baranov. Shot in Latvia, the film sparked major backlash from film critics and government officials, who accused the production of promoting “Kremlin narratives.” The debate has divided critics and officials across Europe.

What’s the film about?

The Wizard of the Kremlin spans the early 1990s through the mid-2010s, tracing the rise of fictional TV producer and political strategist Vadim Baranov amid sweeping political changes — from the collapse of the Soviet Union to the annexation of Crimea.

Besides Baranov, the story features other characters modeled on real-life figures such as oligarch Boris Berezovsky, former Yukos CEO Mikhail Khodorkovsky, and businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin, who would later lead the Wagner mercenary group. Some appear under their real names, while others are thinly disguised but easily recognizable. The creators emphasize that the film is a work of fiction that dramatizes real historical events.

The movie is based on the novel of the same name by Swiss-Italian author Giuliano da Empoli. Published in France in April 2022, shortly after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the book became an immediate bestseller. The film adaptation was directed by Olivier Assayas, who won the 2016 Best Director award at Cannes for Personal Shopper (he shared the award with Cristian Mungiu, who directed Graduation). The screenplay was co-written with writer Emmanuel Carrère, who, unlike da Empoli and Assayas, has written extensively about Russia.

The production had a budget of 23 million euros ($26.6 million) — a large budget for a European art film. Its cast includes Jude Law as Putin, Paul Dano as Baranov, and Alicia Vikander as Baranov’s lover, Ksenia. Law, like co-writer Carrère, has publicly supported the late Alexey Navalny.

Filming took place in Riga, Latvia. The project was produced by the French studio Gaumont in partnership with Latvian company Forma Pro Films, which contributed several local actors, including Andris Keišs as Prigozhin.

Reception in Russia and Western Europe

The Wizard of the Kremlin premiered at the Venice Film Festival in late August 2025. Critics gave it mixed reviews, and it holds modest scores on Rotten Tomatoes. Vulture and Le Monde praised it as “enormously entertaining” and “excellent,” while The Guardian and The Independent dismissed it as “laborious” and “mediocre.”

In Russia, reactions were also divided. Kommersant noted that while the film criticizes the Kremlin, it does so “without strong feelings,” whereas Forbes Russia argued that it ultimately portrays Putin in a flattering light.

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Film critic Anton Dolin predicted the movie would never see a Russian theatrical release — a forecast that proved accurate. The filmmakers never sought distribution in Russia. “This is an English-language film shot in Latvia, with American and Latvian actors and a French crew, aimed primarily at a French audience,” Assayas said.

The director described the story as exploring the roots of Russia’s modern-day political system, with Putin as just one of several antiheroes. The lead actors, meanwhile, emphasized they didn’t want their characters to be reduced to one-dimensional figures.

“I don’t think you always have to look for redeeming qualities in characters,” Dano said at the premiere. “But you need to be willing to understand their point of view. Calling Baranov simply a villain would be far too simplistic.”

Reception in Latvia

In Latvia, critics and officials alike have argued that The Wizard of the Kremlin ultimately plays into Russian propaganda.

“It doesn’t just show a lack of understanding of Russia’s political situation and its evolution since the collapse of the Soviet Union,” film critic Kristīne Simsone wrote. “It also echoes tones associated with Kremlin narratives — namely the idea that Western policy, especially that of the United States, is to blame for today’s political climate in Russia and beyond.”

Film critic Dārta Ceriņa condemned the decision to shoot in Latvia. “French filmmakers apparently see no issue with making a film about Russia in a country that was once occupied — and doing so while Russia occupies another country,” she wrote.

Dita Rietuma, head of Latvia’s National Film Center, said the movie “humanizes and mythologizes Putin,” portraying him as “an interesting, mysterious character” and amplifying elements “favorable to Russian narratives.”

The Latvian authorities declined to co-finance the film. The Latvian Investment and Development Agency wrote that the project could, “in the current geopolitical context,” serve the goals of Russian propaganda. Latvia’s State Security Service similarly stated that the film does not clearly condemn Russian foreign policy and would therefore support Kremlin propaganda.

Svetlana Punte, a producer at Forma Pro Films, disagreed. “I personally don’t see it that way,” she told Meduza. “In my view, the film depicts how elements within Russian society contributed to the rise of an authoritarian system. It includes complex, critical scenes showing moral detachment and cynicism at the highest levels of power.”

Controversy surrounding Forma Pro Films

Le Monde, which examined the making of The Wizard of the Kremlin at length, also reported on Forma Pro Films. The paper described it as a company founded by people originally from Russia who, Le Monde said, spoke Latvian “poorly” and therefore “remained somewhat on the periphery of the local film industry.”

According to the company’s website, Forma Pro Films is headed by President Igor Pronin and Chief Executive Yulia Zaitseva. Pronin appears to have been born in Russia, according to his Facebook profile, while Zaitseva — according to publicly available records — is a Russian citizen. Neither Pronin nor Zaitseva is listed as the company’s formal owner; however, the ultimate beneficiary named in Latvia’s Enterprise Register is Viktoria Zaitseva, a Latvian citizen.

Le Monde named one of Forma Pro Films’ partners as Gilad Regev, a “real estate magnate” who allegedly had business contacts with Mikhail Skigin, a co-owner of the St. Petersburg Oil Terminal. Skigin’s father, Dmitry Skigin, was a major businessman in St. Petersburg in the 1990s and crossed paths with Vladimir Putin, who was then an official in the city administration.

The author of the Le Monde article is Anna Koryagina, a Ukrainian journalist and translator who has lived in France for many years and writes about the film industry. In an interview with the Ukrainian outlet Detektor Media, she clarified that she doesn’t believe the makers of The Wizard of the Kremlin were deliberately trying to promote Russian propaganda:

Svetlana Punte said that Forma Pro Films intends to sue Le Monde over the article.

Despite Le Monde’s portrayal of Forma Pro Films as a fringe player, the company is among the largest film production companies in Latvia. Before the start of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, it took on numerous Russian film projects. The company told Meduza that most of its work now comes from the United States. Forma Pro Films also works with Russian directors and producers based outside Russia who, the company says, do not support the war.

In Latvia, however, questions about Forma Pro Films have extended beyond ideology and into finances. Inga Blēse, deputy head of Latvia’s National Film Center, told state broadcaster LTV that some of the company’s projects had raised concerns about the transparency of their funding. Blēse’s office oversaw a program co-financing foreign productions until 2022.

“Verification of funding sources is a mandatory part of any application to the state [film rebate] program,” Svetlana Punte told Meduza in response. “The government bodies reviewing these projects are fully informed about the structure and origin of the financing.”

The Wizard of the Kremlin was released in Latvia on February 6. Latvian box office figures have not been made public.