Sean Penn wants to go “to the front line” of the front, after his “private visit” to Kiev. What Zelensky conveyed to him

American actor Sean Penn, who just won his third Oscar at a ceremony he did not attend, is on a new visit to Ukraine, where he met with President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday to show his support for Kiev in the face of the Russian invasion, reports AFP.

Already an Oscar winner for his roles in “Mystic River” and “Milk”, Sean Penn was seen by AFP journalists on Monday getting out of a car and entering a hotel in Kiev, with tousled white hair and wearing sunglasses.

He is on a “private visit”, a senior Ukrainian official told AFP. “He simply wants to support Ukraine,” the official was quoted as adding.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hailed Sean Penn as “a true friend of Ukraine” in a social media post, accompanied by a photo of him in his office with the famous actor.

“You have been with Ukraine since the first day of this large-scale war. It is the same today. And we know that you will continue to be with our country and our people,” Zelensky said in the post, addressing the actor.

Sean, thanks to you, we know what a true friend of Ukraine is.
You have stood with Ukraine since the first day of the full-scale war.
This is still true today.
And we know that you will continue to stand with our country and our people. pic.twitter.com/wGneO1rqJI

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Volodymyr Zelenskyy (@ZelenskyyUa) March 16, 2026

The Ukrainian leader had declared in an interview given to AFP in February that he had seen and “loved” the film “One Battle After Another” directed by Paul Anderson, with which Sean Penn won the Oscar for supporting role on Sunday, notes Agerpres.

The 65-year-old actor then plans to go “to the front line” in Ukraine, another Ukrainian source told AFP.

Sean Penn, one of Kiev's supporters in Hollywood, has already visited Ukraine several times since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022.

He also co-directed a documentary in 2023 about Volodymyr Zelensky, himself a former actor.

The documentary, an admiring portrait of Zelenskiy that traces his spectacular rise from comedian to military leader, premiered at the 2023 Berlin International Film Festival.

During interviews in which they talked about the early months of the invasion of Ukraine, Sean Penn and Volodymyr Zelensky struck up what they both described as a deep friendship.

In 2025, Sean Penn and rock star Bono sent a rousing call to the West to support Ukraine at the Cannes International Film Festival, posing for photographers on the red carpet with Ukrainian soldiers, AFP notes.