Sean Penn’s documentary “Superpower,” which profiles President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy amid his country’s war with Russia, debuted on YouTube on Monday for free.
“To make this film available for free has been my dream from the beginning, and I’m incredibly grateful to so many colleagues for their will and grace to make this happen,” Penn said in a Monday statement. “Ukraine’s fight for democracy is our fight too.”
The two-hour documentary, co-directed by Penn and Aaron Kaufman, will stream on the site for one year, and is also available on Paramount+. The film includes two years’ worth of interviews between Penn and Zelenskyy as the American actor visited Ukraine. “Superpower” also features the events that took place months prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as well as Russian President Vladimir Putin’s move to launch an attack on Kyiv.
Filming for “Superpower” started up in 2021, and it was initially supposed to focus solely on Zelenskyy and his background as an actor-turned-politician.
“We set out to tell a lighthearted tale of this comedic actor who had been elected President of Ukraine and instead became witness to a historic leader and his country’s war for freedom,” Penn said. “When you step into a country of such incredible unity, you realize what we (in the United States) have all been missing.”
“What makes this film extraordinary is the immersive nature of Penn’s journey, which is a hallmark of our studio,” Susan Zirinsky, president of See It Now Studios, added. “Being in the president’s bunker the night of the invasion to speak firsthand with Zelenskyy whose country has been facing down the bloodiest invasion in Europe since World War II, Penn appreciated the extraordinarily historic weight of this moment and understood, from that moment on, the world had changed.”
As TheWrap previously reported, “Superpower” was first previewed during the Berlin International Film Festival while it was still in production.
Fifth Season and Vice News financed the film. Vice Studios and Projected Picture Works produced it with Penn, Billy Smith, Sergei Bespalov, Danny Gabai and Lauren Terp. Kate Ward, Katie Peck, Andrew Freston, Bruce Dixon, Hozefa Lokhandwala, Subrata De, Terence Wrong, Anthony Gudas, Chad A. Verdi, Sasha Cherniavsky and Zirinsky serve as executive producers. The film was made in association with APX Content Ventures. Fifth Season handled global distribution.
You can check out the trailer for “Superpower,” below.
