Response in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine

Lore & Background

The Russian culture minister, whose father was one of the liquidators, called the series masterfully made and filmed with great respect for ordinary people. Others were hostile. The head of a communist party called for a criminal libel case against the writer, director and producers and demanded that access to the series be blocked. A newspaper dismissed it as a caricature. It was also reported that a state-run channel was producing its own version of the story in which the CIA plays a key role; the channel was said to have begun that project before the miniseries.

In Ukraine, the deputy director of the national Chernobyl museum in Kyiv called it a necessary film and said the museum would create a special tour about the historic truth of the disaster, inspired by the series.

Reader's Guide

Svetlana Alexievich, the Nobel laureate whose book inspired the series, said that Belarusians who thought they knew a great deal about the tragedy had completely changed their perception of it, and she noted its popularity with young people in Belarus.

One journalist summed up the contrast: in Russia, a state that still takes pride in the Soviet legacy, the series met criticism from official media, while many in Ukraine valued it for humanising a tragic chapter of their history.

Did You Know?

• A trailer for a rival Russian series was uploaded to YouTube and later deleted.
• The Ukrainian museum planned a tour inspired by the series.