Ben Stiller and Sean Penn Permanently Banned By Russia

The Kremlin announced on Monday that Hollywood superstars Ben Stiller and Sean Penn are among the 25 prominent Americans who have been permanently banned from entering Russia. The personal sanctions were in retaliation for the latest round of U.S. sanctions against Moscow over the Ukrainian war, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. Penn and Stiller have been outspoken critics of Russia’s unprovoked and bloody invasion of Ukraine, with both of them recently meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. While Penn is filming a documentary on the war for Vice, Stiller is a goodwill ambassador for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees and visited Ukrainian refugees in Poland in June. Besides the acting heavyweights, Russia also imposed personal sanctions on several U.S. senators such as Mark Kelly of Arizona and Rick Scott of Florida, as well as U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo. Russia has previously issued sanctions against President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and hundreds of other lawmakers and business leaders in response to America’s support for Ukraine.