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Oliver Stone interviews Vladimir Putin in new, uncensored documentary series

The four-part documentary details more than a dozen interviews Stone conducted over the course of two years

Clarisse Loughrey
Tuesday 02 May 2017 10:35 BST
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The Putin Interviews - Showtime Trailer

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A new, four-documentary show will detail a series of conversations between director Oliver Stone and Russian president Vladimir Putin.

Stone interviewed Putin more than a dozen times over the past two years, with those meetings now being turned into The Putin Interviews, to be aired on Showtime in June.

He, and producer Fernando Sulichin, were granted a surprising amount of access both to Putin's personal and professional life; the series even includes an interview that took place in February, after the US election and under increasing belief it was interfered with by Russia.

Showtime announced, "Putin has never before spoken at such length or in such detail to a Western interviewer, leaving no topic off limits"; topics include his views on Trump and the accusations of Russian interference, NATO, and fostering turmoil in Syria, Ukraine, and elswhere.

"It's not a documentary as much as a question and answer session," Stone told The Sydney Morning Herald. "It opens up a whole viewpoint that we as Americans haven’t heard."

"He talks pretty straight. I think we did him the justice of putting [his comments] into a Western narrative that could explain their viewpoint in the hopes that it will prevent continued misunderstanding and a dangerous situation – on the brink of war."

Stone has a history of interviewing controversial and powerful leaders; he's sat down in the past with the likes of Fidel Castro, Hugo Chavez, and Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Putin Interviews premiere Monday, 12 June at 9pm ET.

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