Who is Mr. Zelensky?

“Stubborn, self-confident, vindictive, tactless, recklessly brave, unyielding to pressure and ruthless to those who stood in his way, he absorbed the anger and resilience of his people and openly and decisively showed it to the whole world, becoming the embodiment of the strength of spirit that all leaders hope to find in themselves in moments of crisis” – this is how American journalist Simon Shuster immediately characterizes the current, sixth president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, in the opening pages of his book “The Showman. Volodymyr Zelensky and the War in Ukraine.” The book was published last year in the USA, then translated into Ukrainian, and later released in Russian by Meduza Publishing House.

Shuster worked as a correspondent for Time magazine in Ukraine for 15 years, then left, but returned at the start of the war – he couldn’t miss the conflict in a country to which he had devoted so much professional effort. Moreover, he was very interested in the phenomenon of Zelensky, who managed, without any political background, to lead such a complex warring state – since by the time of Ukraine’s last presidential elections, the war in Donbas had already been going on for five years.

Zelensky’s popularity as an artist in Ukraine was enormous. Besides his show “95 Quarter,” Ukrainian audiences loved the series “Servant of the People,” launched back in 2015: “…comic or candidate – it didn’t matter, it seemed they loved him in any role,” writes Shuster. He sees this as the main reason for Zelensky’s confident election victory – his campaign was essentially the series, where Zelensky played a simple teacher who by a miraculous turn of events became president of Ukraine.

From the very beginning, Shuster describes the future president, with whom he began actively communicating at the start of the presidential race, as an extraordinarily vain man, eager for flattery and praise.

Much of that vanity pushed him into this adventure – having no political experience except satirical sketches on stage, he rushed into the fight for the presidency. But back then, in spring 2019, Volodymyr Oleksandrovych could not even imagine in his worst nightmare what Golgotha awaited him.

Shuster recounts a telling incident. During the presidential campaign, Zelensky was giving a concert. Before the concert, a bomb threat was somehow suspected in the building. The future president was nervous but persuaded them not to cancel the concert. And after the concert, as the author tells, he was so excited and happy from the ovations and sea of flowers that he simply forgot about the just-passed danger and didn’t mention it at all.

He generally didn’t fully understand what he was getting into – he thought the presidency would merely complicate his life somewhat, burden him with new duties, but overall everything would remain as it was – running the TV channel, “95 Quarter,” performances, tours. Like a child going to first grade for the first time, convinced that carefree kindergarten games won’t disappear.

“…he insisted he was serious: he would meet only with cool politicians and leave dealings with the rest to the ‘professionals.’ ‘I don’t want to change my life,’ he said. ‘I don’t want to become politically correct. That’s not me.’ Maybe pride spoke through him, or maybe he didn’t know what awaited him in the new role. But he seemed to believe that being the country’s leader wouldn’t require changes from him. Show business taught him everything needed to play the president’s role, and he intended to remain as life experience had shaped him. ‘Lose yourself,’ he said, ‘and you’ll be sucked into the swamp.’ Of course, such statements from a 40-year-old man fighting for the presidency of a country at war can only cause awkwardness among those around him.

Zelensky’s fate is phenomenal in itself, but the metamorphoses he underwent during his presidency simply don’t fit the usual notions of human character development.

These metamorphoses are the object of the author’s interest in “The Showman.” The book ends in December 2022, and the author describes in detail the main events at the start of Russian aggression. Here is the first day of the war, when Zelensky is both confused and resolute – his words, uttered to some commanders during the battles for Hostomel Airport, are driven by both confusion and determination: “No mercy – use all weapons and destroy all Russians there.” Easier said than done… Here is Zelensky in a bunker, resembling a living corpse – pale, with bags under his eyes. However, everyone there looked like living corpses – no light, no proper food, no full sleep. Here the president goes to the soldiers at the front, refusing to wear a helmet – he wants to appear one of them, the same soldier. It seems childish, and friends have reproached him for this more than once. But such ‘childishness’ is priceless during war.

We read “The Showman” – and his hero grows before our eyes, turning from a comic actor (though many forget that Zelensky also had his own business empire, reducing his activity to mere entertainment of the common man) into a tragic and powerful figure of global scale, with whom, contrary to many expectations, the West quickly began to reckon. At the same time, Shuster’s book is purely journalistic, having nothing to do with literary flourishes or fantasies about “how I see my hero.” Fictional embellishments aside. We have before us a strict, unbiased account of what the author saw, heard, and observed. In this sense, “The Showman” is a brilliant piece of journalism, where the journalist manages, almost without inserting his own guesses or declared views of the hero, using only skillfully selected facts, to create a complex portrait of a complex personality.

Does Shuster admire Zelensky? Undoubtedly. But the professional biographer-researcher reserves the right not to limit himself to admiring tones. At times, the author is ruthless, brutally honest with both the reader and the hero. By the way, Zelensky knew that Shuster was writing the book and did not object. Surely, later he disliked much of it, and some even seemed downright offensive.

“He was a disappointed leader who promised to achieve peace and failed. He was an upstart who thought he could run a country of forty-four million people just like he ran his film studio”.

An offensive but exhaustive and accurate characterization. Yes, Volodymyr Zelensky was not ready for the presidency in such a difficult period for the country. Yes, he underestimated the danger of Russian troop buildup on the border. Yes, according to many Ukrainian military commanders, he took on too much when making military decisions, and it was not always effective. Shuster writes about all this without a shadow of embarrassment toward his hero, who will soon read all this. And the author also notes an important point: “I don’t know if he will have the wisdom and restraint to relinquish the extraordinary powers he received during wartime, or if he will become too dependent on them.” However, that is yet to come, and for now – there is war.

In Russia, Zelensky’s enemies, supporters of Putin, who dislikes the Ukrainian president so much that he even avoids saying his name aloud (the same was true with Navalny), like to call him “The Showman.” In their mouths, it sounds like a contemptuous verdict – as if to say, what can you expect from this clown. But Shuster believes that the mindset and skills Zelensky’s profession gave him helped him a lot as president. This includes instant reaction honed during KVN games, the ability to make decisions as a team, and the powerful creative element of the profession, allowing him to view events from unexpected new angles. Also, his acting charisma and ability to “ignite” the audience.

“…the showman’s craft, which he honed for more than twenty years as an actor on stage and producer in the film business, allowed Zelensky to conduct this war with such success – a war that demanded Ukraine not only stay in the global spotlight but also attract sympathy from populations and governments worldwide.”

This, of course, is a debatable statement – showmanship skills do not always help the mastery of a president of a country at war. Moreover, frankly speaking, given the contempt opponents of Zelensky put into this word, the title “The Showman” does not seem fitting.

There will be much more written about Zelensky – both good and bad, admiring and hateful, grateful and contemptuous. For now, we have been given the opportunity to trace how this man, by fate and his own ambitions, found himself on the Golgotha of war.

In the main photo – Volodymyr Zelensky addressing his fellow citizens ahead of the New Year, December 31, 2024. Source: Office of the President of Ukraine