The Biković case: HBO succumbed to Ukraine's skillful propaganda

It is very difficult to write something objective when an incident like that happens replacement of Miloš Biković in the series "White Lotus", the respectable – actually the most respectable – television company HBO.

Objectively, Miloš Biković was replaced in that series because Ukrainians - quite logically and justifiably - are annoyed that a very famous, perhaps one of the most famous Russian actors is playing in a very successful, and recently perhaps the most successful television series in the world.

Even the message put together by very skilled Ukrainian propagandists for the needs of their Ministry of Foreign Affairs had difficulty pointing out where Miloš Biković had actually wronged the Ukrainians since the beginning of the war. In that message, we see Miloš receiving an order from Putin, receiving Russian citizenship, making some statements about how he supports Russia - all of this in the context of today in the West seems very bad, but to be honest, it's not much different from British athletes who receive aristocratic titles as soon as they achieve something, famous rock stars who become lords in their mature years or American actors who go to donor dinners with Democratic Party candidates for President.

Yes, it is a bit specific about Putin that the stars change and he is always there. In the case of Americans, it is the other way around, democratic presidents change, and George Clooney is always there, but the content is very similar.

Even Sean Penn has pictures from the Moscow festival where he sits with Putin, and before Zelensky he was in awe of Hugo Chavez, Putin's close ally and the founder of the Venezuelan regime, which even after his death has enormous support from the Kremlin. Today, Sean Penn is ready to fight with the whole of Hollywood because of Zelensky, although he is justifying himself for hanging out with Putin at the time, but one should never blame very popular people for attracting the attention of those who are very powerful and want to refresh their political power with someone's cultural capital .

The correct ratio of Hollywood publications

The visit to Crimea after the Russian annexation where Miloš Biković went on business is also mentioned, about which Ukraine has a very strict attitude and declares every foreign visitor it finds out to be persona non grata in its country, but at least no one needs to explain to us that with such an attitude can't get far.

Turn it around, it all boils down to the fact that Ukrainians are annoyed that Biković got a role in the series, and then they tried to raise it to the level of some kind of principled struggle for human rights and to cancel it. HBO granted their wish and will not irritate them with the role of Miloš Biković, in my free opinion, first of all, so that he would not have Sean Penn's monologues to his detriment tomorrow.

However, I would not say that Miloš Biković lost this PR battle. On the contrary. To begin with, he received the support of our Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which was quite rigid and unimaginative in its letter, but its diplomatic meaning is clear - Serbia does not look favorably on the disruption of the life and work of Miloš Biković. In terms of its content, that letter has no particular value in a public discussion because it is not written in a brilliant way, but it is very valuable in a diplomatic one.

Then, neither "Varajeti" nor other Hollywood publications took the Ukrainian claims for granted and in their articles quite objectively portrayed the nature of Miloš's communication with the Kremlin. Of course, they fail to put into context the fact that Putin did not lead aggression against Ukraine at the time the videos date from and that he was not an absolute villain as he is presented today, but they also emphasize that Miloš Biković, except for a working visit to Crimea, did not go to any threatened Ukraine in any way or supported the war. Furthermore, they present a fairly reasonable assessment of why his more intense opposition to the war in light of Russia's repressive laws would be a practical and suicidal act without much meaning.

In the same way, all professional publications also reported the letter in which he reacts to all these events.

What is allowed to Jupiter…

Again, when we have already moved to the personal field, we should not lie, at least we know that even after almost thirty years since the end of the conflict in our region, certain public figures create animosity due to some real or imagined actions during the escalation of the war. Every concert of Dino Merlin in the Arena raises the question of his real and fictional quotes, just as in Croatia the concert of Aleksandra Prijović is considered the twilight of civilization. For various reasons, we look forward to seeing Goran Bogdan in the American series "Fargo", but we are skeptical when Danis Tanović or Jasmila Žbanić direct for HBO, Rundek can play wherever he wants, and Thompson can't, and that's just the way it is.

However, it is not fair to elevate personal discomfort to which everyone has a right to the level of some kind of principle. And that's what the Ukrainians did and they set a very dangerous precedent, and that in the area that our people absolved, and forgave the sins of the heroes from the screen.

However, truth be told, they were not irritated by Miloš Biković as a Serb, but as a Russian, and it is possible that such things are common in Russian-Ukrainian relations. In the global sphere, however, they did not and HBO succumbed to the pressure, which is extremely uncharacteristic of them as a brand.

Namely, HBO has always been a brand whose basic characteristic is that viewers pay for the program and give their trust, and this company responds to that and always surpasses it. Hence, in the spirit of HBO as a brand, it would be expected that they say that they made a decision, thought it through and stand behind it, and that in the end they are right.

HBO is not what it used to be either

However, HBO isn't what it used to be either. He is now part of a larger media conglomerate, just one bolt of their global streaming service Max, and he takes a different and less elitist approach. And, let's be completely frank, he's not doing well and he doesn't need some noises of this kind.

In a world where HBO is no longer what it used to be, even the role in "White Lotus" does not have the importance it once had. Paradoxically, this event is the kind of combative and controversial spirit that previously characterized this house, and now has been lost somewhere in the stock market report.

The importance of Miloš Biković is finally confirmed by the fact that he took his right to work to challenge Dmitro Kuleb, and to perform the work for which Simo Spasić is usually in charge in our country. But it is also a clear picture of how important cultural capital is, when in one Kuleba he wakes up Sima so easily.

I believe that in the history of HBO, this case will be remembered more than if the role was played as planned. Admittedly, when he got the role, I sent Miloš a message with a congratulatory message and a request to bring me Michelle Monaghan's autograph if he had the opportunity to work with her. As things stand, I will be without the autograph I was so looking forward to, but again I will lose much less than HBO in the eyes of those for whom those three letters once meant a lot.

The author is a playwright, screenwriter, actor and film critic