Hollywoods Sean Penn and Ben Stiller banned from Russia after visiting Ukraine

Get the best celeb gossip with the Daily Star Showbiz newsletter

We have more newsletters

Hollywood's Sean Penn and Ben Stiller have been barred from entering Russia after making public trips to Ukraine and voicing their support for President Zelensky's fight against Russian aggression.

Penn and Stiller have been put on a list of 25 US citizens now banned from stepping on Russian soil.

READ MORE: Pensioner shoots down Russia's 'world-beating' £74m jet with hunting rifle in Ukraine.

Others prohibited from entering include politicians, trade officials and industrial executives, the Daily Mail reports.

Stiller, a goodwill ambassador for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, met with Zelensky in June, telling the leader: "It's a great honor for me. It's really wonderful. You're my hero."

Dead Man Walking star Penn was in Ukraine filming a documentary when Russian forces invaded on February 24.

He fled on foot, joining millions of Ukrainian citizens crossing into Poland during the brutal first days of the war.

The actor returned to Ukraine in June to visit Zelensky.

He has said of the leader: "Part of what makes him so particularly extraordinary is that courage, he's the face of so many Ukrainians.

"I mean this is leadership we aspire to, this is freedom of thought and true leadership that mostly is just so moving," Penn said at the time."

He finished with: "Ukraine with all its diversity has a unity we've never seen in modern times with the challenge it has."

Penn has also visited the city of Bucha to witness first-hand evidence of the alleged atrocities that have taken place there at the hands of Russian troops.

In a statement on the war, Penn said that if Putin does not withdraw from Ukraine, he will have made "a most horrible mistake for all of humankind".

He added that President Zelensky and the Ukrainian people "have risen as historic symbols of courage and principle" and that "Ukraine is the tip of the spear for the democratic embrace of dreams".

"If we allow it to fight alone, our soul as America is lost."

READ NEXT:

  • Inside Freddie Mercury's will – £75m fortune, huge gift to ex and secret ashes request
  • Britney Spears' son opted to miss her A-list wedding after family snub

  • Steve Irwin's dying moments caught on camera in tragic video – but will never air

  • Hollywood

Source: Read Full Article

Previous post John Legend Praises Wife Chrissy for Using Social Media in Relatable Way After Cyberbullying Issue
Next post Claim to Fame Here Are All of the Clues Revealed Before Season Finale!