Oscar Statuette for Documentary Missing After TSA Screening at JFK Airport

Pavel Talankin, co-director of the Oscar-winning documentary "Mr Nobody Against Putin," reported that his Academy Award statuette disappeared after being required to check it as luggage during a Transportation Security Administration screening at John F.

Kennedy International Airport. The incident occurred at Terminal 1 on Wednesday, when TSA agents determined the 8.5-pound gold trophy could be considered a potential weapon and prohibited it from carry-on baggage. Talankin, who had carried the award on previous flights without issues, placed it in checked luggage for a Lufthansa flight to Frankfurt, Germany.

Upon arrival on Thursday, he found the box containing the Oscar was missing from his luggage.

The documentary, which won the Oscar for Best Feature Documentary this year, chronicles Talankin's experience as a former Russian grade school teacher who refused to implement a nationalist curriculum following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, leading to his exile.

Talankin noted that prior to winning, his main concern about the Oscar was its weight, having only seen plastic replicas before. He celebrated his 35th birthday in Los Angeles during the Oscar campaign.

David Borenstein, Talankin's collaborator and co-director, posted on Instagram about the incident, questioning the treatment. "I’ve looked and I can’t find a single other case of someone being forced to check an Oscar. Would Pavel have been treated the same way if he were a famous actor?

" Borenstein wrote, tagging Lufthansa and TSA. The post prompted online calls for accountability and demands to locate or replace the award.

Lufthansa stated it regrets the situation and is conducting a comprehensive internal search for the award. The event has not been linked to other reported cases of Oscars being forced into checked baggage. Talankin's account, as reported to Deadline, highlighted the classification of the award as a weapon.