Sean Penn gives Ukrainian President his Oscar in a symbolic gesture

Sean Penn and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky

Actor Sean Penn has gifted one of his Oscar trophies to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The actor, 62, who won the Academy Award for Best Actor in 2004 and 2009 for Mystic River and Milk respectively, has presented one of the statuettes to Zelensky as a "symbolic" gesture to the politician and his people in Ukraine.

In a video shared on the president's Telegram channel, Penn told him, "It's just symbolic, but if I know this is here then, I'll feel better and strong enough for the fights. When you win, bring it back to Malibu, becau,se I'll feel much better knowing there's a piece of me here."

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The trophy will remain in the country until the end of the ongoing war with Russia. In return, Penn was honoured with Ukraine's Order of Merit. Zelensky said, "It's not from me, it's from Ukraine." In reponse, Penn added, "There are three places in the world that all the pride of my life will be. The place where my daughter was born, the place where my son was born and this." The actor had previously promised to "smelt" his Oscar if the Academy didn't invite Zelensky to appear at the 2022 Oscars, even though doing so would have violated a rule prohibiting winners from selling the prize. Penn said, "There is nothing greater that the Academy Awards could do than to give him that opportunity to talk to all of us. This is a man who understands movies and had his own long and successful career in that."

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