Ukraine slams Oscar winner over pro-Russia outburst
Jared Leto said he missed Russia and will return with concerts after “problems” (also known as: the invasion of Ukraine) are finished.
KYIV — For every Sean Penn, there’s one Jared Leto.
Ukrainians were triggered over the weekend by Leto — an Oscar-winning actor and lead singer of Thirty Seconds to Mars — expressing his sadness over being unable to play concerts in Russia during remarks at a gig in Belgrade last week.
“We missed you guys, you know that. I tell you what, one day when all these problems are finished we’re gonna come visit you in your homeland. We’re gonna go up to St. Petersburg, over to Moscow, we’re going to drop down to Kyiv, we’re going to party and hang out with everybody the way it should be,” Leto said while performing with the band.
On multiple concert videos posted by fans over the weekend Leto asked how many people in the audience are from Russia and, after a loud roar, he said he “felt [a] little Russian energy up there tonight.”
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said in a statement Sunday that Leto’s desire to perform in Russia is an insult to the Ukrainians who are “sacrificing” their lives to “defend freedom” against Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin’s ongoing full-scale invasion.
“There can be no appeasement for Russia when it continues its attempts to solve the ‘problem’ of Ukraine’s very existence,” the ministry said.
Leto — who won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in 2014 for his role in “Dallas Buyers Club” — had previously supported Ukraine in its resistance to Putin’s assault.
Many other Hollywood stars, including actors Mark Hamill, Ben Stiller, Liev Schreiber and Sean Penn have staunchly backed Kyiv in its fight against Russia.
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