Russia hates HBO series ‘Chernobyl’, decides to make its own show

HBO miniseries “Chernobyl” has achieved almost universal acclaim, except from Russia.

Critics and audiences alike have placed the show at the top of IMDb’s list of highest-rated series, and the dramatic retelling of the 1986 nuclear reactor explosion has even inserted itself into mainstream political dialogue. “Chernobyl” also addresses ensuing cleanup efforts of the disaster and shows the lengths to which the Soviet Union was willing to go to restrict the speech of those involved, hiding the gravity of the situation from the rest of the world.

However, the series has not been warmly received by the Kremlin, which has launched a mini-crusade in response, according to the Moscow Times. Russia’s most popular newspaper, Komsomolskaya Pravda, raised suspicions that competitors of Russia’s state-run nuclear center were using the series to tarnish the country’s legacy as a nuclear power.

“The only things missing are the bears and accordions!” quipped Stanislav Natanzon, the lead anchor of Russia 24, one of the country’s main news channels.

According to AV Club, the country has even produced its own series focusing on a “conspiracy theory” that inserts American spies into the story. Instead of the scientists, soldiers, and civilians who helped prevent the spread of radiation, the series also depicts KGB operatives attempting to thwart CIA efforts as its heroes.

Some have criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin for not honoring Chernobyl’s survivors more often.

“Just go to the official Kremlin website to see how often President Vladimir Putin mentions the Chernobyl survivors — many of whom are still alive and suffer from a variety of radiation-induced illnesses,” writes the Times’ Ilya Shepelin. “Putin’s sole references to them occur on the major anniversaries of the Chernobyl accident. He last mentioned them in 2016, on the 30th anniversary of the disaster, and again in 2011, on the 25th anniversary.”