Oscar for 'Mr Nobody Against Putin' lost after TSA considered it a possible weapon
NBC News • • entertainment
Key Points:
- Russian filmmaker Pavel Talankin's Oscar statuette for best documentary feature was mistakenly confiscated by TSA agents at JFK Airport, who deemed it a potential weapon and forced him to check it in for a flight to Germany.
- The statuette was bubble-wrapped and placed in a cardboard box for cargo but went missing upon Talankin's arrival in Frankfurt; Lufthansa confirmed the Oscar has now been located and is arranging its return.
- Talankin, who has flown multiple times with the Oscar without issue, expressed confusion over the TSA's decision, while co-director David Borenstein criticized the treatment as unusual and possibly discriminatory.
- Lufthansa is conducting an internal review to prevent similar incidents, and Talankin's representatives continue to monitor the situation closely as he awaits the statuette's return.
- "Mr Nobody Against Putin," Talankin's award-winning documentary, explores Russian patriotic propaganda justifying the invasion of Ukraine, filmed in a Russian mining town school.
