"The White Lotus" casting controversy: Ukraine opposes HBO's new actor as a "genocide supporter"

Ukraine's foreign ministry has condemned a casting selection for the upcoming third season of HBO's  "The White Lotus," accusing actor Miloš Biković of being a "genocide supporter" regarding the ongoing Russo-Ukraine war, per TIME magazine. “Miloš Biković, Serbian actor who has been supporting Russia since the start of the full-scale invasion, is now set to star in HBO’s 'The White Lotus' Season 3,” Ukraine’s foreign ministry wrote on X/Twitter. “@HBO, is it all right for you to work with a person who supports genocide & violates international law?” The foreign ministry shared similar remarks on Instagram, posting a photo of Biković that claimed he "supports genocide & violates international law."

Time reported that Biković gained Russian citizenship in 2021 by presidential decree. “It is a great honour to say today: Russia is my homeland!” he posted on Instagram at the time. “I have been actively participating in Russian cultural life for more than 7 years. For me it’s a blessing and the source of happiness.” However, AFP reported that in 2019 Biković was barred from Ukraine for national security reasons, and in 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin awarded him one of the Kremlin's most prestigious cultural awards. TIME reported that "The White Lotus" marks Biković's first American production, also noting that Ukraine has previously accused the actor of starring in projects filmed in Crimea, which was unlawfully annexed by Russia in 2014.

The third season of Mike White's "The White Lotus" will shoot in Thailand.