Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been the target of multiple spurious and salacious falsehoods shared by pro-Russian social media accounts and sympathizers of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Some of the allegations Newsweek has investigated included the claim he lives in a $5.5 million mansion with an infinity pool, that he ordered the destruction of documents linked to U.S. President Joe Biden's son, Hunter, and that he said the U.S. will send its young people to war for Ukraine.
Among the more bizarre claims mentioning Zelensky, a video was shared this week purportedly of Lord of the Rings star Elijah Wood that appeared to show the actor urging the Ukrainian president to seek treatment for drug and alcohol use.
The Claim
A tweet by account @SpriterTeam, posted on July 20, 2023, viewed 837,000 times, included a video seemingly of Elijah Wood on Instagram stories saying: "Vladimir, hi, Elijah here. I hope this finds you happy, healthy and well."
The video cuts, then Wood says "You," before another cut, after which Wood says, "Just a sort of greater dependency on drugs and alcohol. So, I just want to make sure that you're getting help."
After another cut in the video, Wood said: "We all suffer from that, of course, so I just hope that, you know, you're looking at yourself, taking care of yourself, taking your health into consideration, and know that..."
Another cut appears, after which Wood adds, "Should you need help, there are people out there that want to help you."
A final cut is made, before Wood says, "If you do need help, I hope you get the help that you need. Alright, lots of love, Vladimir, take care."
The video was covered with a TMZ logo, a Ukrainian flag emoji, the label "@zelenskiy_official", and the website address for "WWW.HAZELDENBETTYFORD.ORG."
The accompanying tweet said: "Hollywood actor invited Zelensky to the US to recover from drug addiction.
"Hollywood actor Elijah Wood, known for the film 'The Lord of the Rings', turned to the President of Ukraine with a proposal to undergo treatment for drug and alcohol addiction.
"'Hi Vladimir, you have a serious problem with alcohol and drugs. Hope you take care of yourself. We have people here who can help you,' Wood said. After that, the social network blocked the actor's page."
The Facts
There are multiple signs from the video confirming with near certainty that Wood did not urge Zelensky to go to rehab.
To start, Wood says the wrong name at the beginning of the video (Vladimir, not Volodymyr), the video is heavily and unusually edited, Wood never mentions the name Zelensky or Ukraine, and there is no clear message in it apart from Wood telling someone called Vladimir to seek help (which, because of the editing, isn't entirely cogent, either).
There's also other peculiar editing on top of the video such as a TMZ logo plastered across the screen, despite TMZ carrying no such story about Wood or Zelensky.
Slowing down the video reveals the name of the purported Instagram account the video came from, which appears to read "elijah.wood.klgring," an account that has no search presence online or on Instagram.
Further, as recently as March this year, Wood has said that he keeps his Instagram private, but the video appears to show an account with 1.5 million followers and (perhaps more tellingly) only nine posts, six of which for what appears to be for an amateur film called Olympics Has Fallen. (The only marketing presence Newsweek was able to find for the film was a Telegram channel created on July 3, 2023.) The three other posts seem to be images cribbed from Wood's Twitter account.
Olympics Has Fallen is not mentioned on Wood's other social media accounts. Promotional images of this film in the video shared online, falsely attribute Tom Cruise among its cast.
Within the Olympics Has Fallen picture in the video is a QR code, which links to a Telegram account, created on July 3, 2023, dedicated to an "exclusive documentary series" that "opens a Pandora's box of untold financial and sports scandals surrounding the International Olympic Committee."
Within that Telegram group are a number of doctored images, appearing to show celebrities praising Olympics Has Fallen, none of which appear to be authentic, either.
Another watermark on the Wood video ("Kremlin_Russian") strongly suggests it may have been part of a Russian propaganda effort. Indeed, searching the social media network Telegram shows the video has been shared on pro-Russian channels. The video was also shared by "Pizzagate" conspiracist Jack Posobiec on the same platform.
Further, this version of the video appears to be the only one that exists. Had Wood posted a defamatory or controversial Zelensky video, it's likely there would have been other versions recorded or reports of the video from news outlets that had verified the video separately, potentially reaching out to Wood and/or Zelensky. There are none.
Wood has previously spoken out in support of Ukraine following its invasion by Russia.
Some commentators on Twitter have suggested that the video may have been bought via the video site Cameo, where you can book Wood to record a personal video for $340.
Newsweek has contacted representatives for Wood and Instagram to comment and to find out about the source of the underlying video.
In short, given that Wood does not have a public Instagram account, that the video appears to help support a dubiously promoted documentary series, that it has been linked to pro-Russian social media pages, and that the video is so heavily edited and unusual, we are confident it and the claims attached to it are bogus.
The Ruling
False.
Apart from the fact that the video has been bizarrely edited, it does not mention Zelensky, only someone named Vladimir, and is attributed to an Instagram account with no web presence.
Elijah Wood does not have a public Instagram account and the video being shared of him online, allegedly asking Zelensky to seek treatment, is the only recording available. The video appears to have been spread as a Russian propaganda effort and to promote a dubious documentary that falsely credits Tom Cruise as its star.
Although Newsweek is yet to hear from Wood's representatives for comment, we are confident that the video and claims surrounding it are, respectively, inauthentic and false.
FACT CHECK BY Newsweek's Fact Check team
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