Speaking in a new podcast, Stone said Putin suffered from cancer and believed he had overcome it (Photo: Kremlin Pool / Rex)
The director, who gained unprecedented access to Vladimir Putin for two years, claims to have suffered from cancer.
Oscar-winning director Oliver Stone, whose credits include JFK and Platoon, knows the Russian dictator better than any Westerner.
Speaking in a new podcast, Stone said Putin had suffered from cancer and believed he had overcome it.
If true, this is not recognized by the Russian people.
The claim comes amid speculation that the Kremlin leader is hiding an acute health condition such as cancer or Parkinson’s.
The Kremlin has always categorically denied that Putin was ill, but critics say the mysterious disappearances, long tables and sometimes swollen, trembling appearance could prove otherwise.
Stone said he had not met with Putin in three years, and his in-depth interviews with him were between 2015 and 2017.
Images of Putin looking swollen and moody fuel speculation about his health (Photo: Getty) US film director Oliver Stone interviews Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow (Photo: AFP)
“Remember that, Mr Putin had this cancer and I think he licked it,” he told podcast interviewee Lex Friedman.
“But he’s also isolated because of Covid.”
In Russia, there are speculations that Putin’s deep isolation from Covid is due to an existing but unspecified medical condition that makes him particularly vulnerable.
Explaining why Putin may have misjudged the invasion of Ukraine, Stone speculated that “he may have lost touch with people.”
It is unclear whether Putin is receiving the right intelligence, he added.
– You would think that he is not well informed about the degree of cooperation he will receive from [ethnic Russians] in Ukraine.
“That would be one of the factors that he did not properly assess the situation.”
It is also possible that his “isolation from normal activities” and no longer meeting people “face to face” due to Putin’s health concerns about Covid may have led to mistakes.
Stone’s comments suggest Putin may have had cancer and returned (Photo: Getty)
Stone’s words about cancer raise the possibility – if true – that he initially fought cancer, but that he has returned in the three years since he met with Putin.
The director – who has been criticized for being an apologist for Putin – did not specify the type of cancer.
He appears to be referring to notes before commenting that Putin suffered from a cancer he “licked”.
There has been speculation recently that Putin has thyroid cancer.
An investigation by Russian independent journalists found that Putin was constantly surrounded by a large medical team led by a specialist thyroid surgeon.
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Another version is that he suffers from stomach cancer.
There are rumors in Moscow that he is about to have surgery on his face for cancer and that he may appoint a trusted aide, Nikolai Patrushev, secretary of the Russian Security Council, at the helm while he is incapacitated.
There are also allegations that Putin has Parkinson’s disease.
The Kremlin has always insisted that Putin is in good health.
Earlier, Stone told Putin: “It’s been three years since I last saw him, but the man I knew had nothing to do with the crazy, irresponsible and murderer the media portrays today, comparing him to Hitler and Stalin.
“Putin, whom I knew, was rational, calm, always acting in the interests of the Russian people, a true son of Russia, a patriot who does not mean a nationalist.”
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