Putin Gives Thumb Down to CNN Documentary: 'Odious Material'

The Kremlin reportedly panned CNN's documentary, "The Most Powerful Man in the World," about Russia's President Vladimir Putin, calling the film "odious" and "hysterical."

"This was rather odious material," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted as saying by news agency RIA Novosti, adding "there was nothing new in it," according to The Hollywood Reporter.

According to THR, the documentary, narrated by CNN's Fareed Zakaria, repeated charges the Kremlin had ordered hackers to meddle the 2016 election, and Moscow might have compromising materials against President Donald Trump.

Peskov complained the film was made "in a hysterical and emotional way, based on opinions that are groundless and often nothing but figments of imagination" – though he called it "positive" that "they gave us the opportunity to take part in the film and express our position on a number of issues," THR reported.

The documentary also features former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, as well as journalists Julia Ioffe of The Atlantic and David Remnick of The New Yorker.

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