Jude Law transformed into a portrayal of Russian President Vladimir Putin in Olivier Assayas’ "The Wizard of the Kremlin," which had its world premiere Sunday at the Venice Film Festival.
The film, an adaptation of Giuliano da Empoli’s bestselling book of the same name, traces the rise to power of Putin alongside a fictional adviser named Vadim Baranov, played by Paul Dano. The story is partially set in the early 1990s amid the post-Soviet chaos that followed the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Dano’s character was inspired by the real political strategist Vladislav Sourkov, described in the source material as an architect of the tightly controlled political system that took shape under Putin. The notes accompanying the film’s premiere say Sourkov resigned his post of deputy prime minister in 2013.
Assayas’s adaptation arrives amid ongoing international attention to Russia’s actions abroad. The film is likely to prompt discussion as Russia’s three-year war in Ukraine continues; efforts to achieve a ceasefire and a comprehensive peace settlement have made no progress despite intense diplomatic activity, according to reporting accompanying the premiere.
The Venice premiere marks the film’s first public screening, placing it on an international stage where cinematic portrayals of contemporary political figures often draw scrutiny and debate. The narrative’s focus on the early post-Soviet period seeks to chart the political and social upheavals that shaped the modern Russian state and the figures who emerged from that era.
Festival screenings typically precede broader distribution plans, and the Venice showing will be the first opportunity for critics and audiences to assess Assayas’s interpretation of da Empoli’s book and the performances of Law and Dano. The film’s presentation in Venice positions it within an annual lineup that often influences awards-season consideration and international distribution, though no wider release schedule was announced at the premiere.
The adaptation joins a body of recent films and books that examine Russia’s recent history and leadership at a moment when those subjects remain central to international political discourse. The Venice screening provided the first public look at Law’s transformation into one of the world’s most scrutinized leaders and at Assayas’s cinematic approach to a controversial and consequential chapter of recent history.