HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_019740.jpg
1.56 MB
Extraction Summary
7
People
4
Organizations
3
Locations
2
Events
3
Relationships
5
Quotes
Document Information
Type:
Book page / congressional exhibit
File Size:
1.56 MB
Summary
This document is a page from the book 'How America Lost Its Secrets' (likely by Edward Jay Epstein, not Jeffrey Epstein), stamped by the House Oversight Committee. It details an interview with filmmaker Oliver Stone, who admits to paying Edward Snowden's Russian lawyer, Anatoly Kucherena, $1 million. While officially for book rights, Stone confirmed the payment was actually to secure 'total access' to Snowden and to successfully block a competing Sony film project produced by the James Bond franchise producers.
People (7)
| Name | Role | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Stone | Filmmaker (Oliver Stone) |
Paid $1 million to Kucherena for access to Snowden; blocked Sony's competing film.
|
| Anatoly Kucherena | Snowden's legal representative |
Received $1 million from Stone; member of the public board of the Russian federal security bureau.
|
| Edward Snowden | Subject |
Subject of competing movie projects; represented by Kucherena.
|
| Barbara Broccoli | Producer |
James Bond producer who optioned Greenwald's book for Sony.
|
| Michael G. Wilson | Producer |
James Bond producer who optioned Greenwald's book for Sony.
|
| Glenn Greenwald | Author |
Author of 'No Place to Hide'.
|
| The Author (I) | Interviewer/Writer |
Likely Edward Jay Epstein (based on book title and filename); interviewing Stone.
|
Organizations (4)
| Name | Type | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Sony |
Studio planning a competing Snowden film which was put on hold.
|
|
| Russian federal security bureau (FSB) |
Agency where Kucherena held a board position.
|
|
| KGB |
Defunct agency whose operations were assumed by the FSB.
|
|
| House Oversight Committee |
Stamped on the document (HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_019740).
|
Relationships (3)
Stone paid Kucherena $1 million for access to Snowden.
Kucherena is described as Snowden’s legal representative in Moscow.
Key Quotes (5)
"“Is your script based on Kucherena’s Time of the Octopus?” I asked."Source
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Quote #1
"“No,” Stone replied. “I haven’t used it.”"Source
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Quote #2
"He said that the payment was for what he termed “total access.”"Source
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_019740.jpg
Quote #3
"Stone said that the million-dollar deal with Kucherena effectively guaranteed that any competing project would not have access to Snowden."Source
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Quote #4
"Where the money went was far less clear."Source
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_019740.jpg
Quote #5
Full Extracted Text
Complete text extracted from the document (2,271 characters)
252 | HOW AMERICA LOST ITS SECRETS
These documents also revealed that Stone had paid Anatoly Kucherena, Snowden’s legal representative in Moscow, $1 million, supposedly for the rights to his novel, Time of the Octopus. Even by Hollywood standards, $1 million was an extraordinary sum to pay for a yet-to-be-published work of Russian fiction, and it was especially striking because Stone was making a fact-based movie using the actual names of the characters, and he had already bought the rights to The Snowden Files.
“Is your script based on Kucherena’s Time of the Octopus?” I asked.
“No,” Stone replied. “I haven’t used it.”
He said that the payment was for what he termed “total access.” He explained that Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson, the producers of the James Bond franchise, had optioned Greenwald’s book No Place to Hide to make into a movie about Snowden for Sony. Stone said that the million-dollar deal with Kucherena effectively guaranteed that any competing project would not have access to Snowden. Sony consequently put the competing film on hold.
Lawyers often negotiate deals on behalf of a client, but blocking a competing film requires considerably more influence with the powers that be in Russia. Kucherena, though, was no ordinary lawyer. Among other influential positions, I noted earlier, he was on the public board of the Russian federal security bureau, which had assumed the domestic operations of the defunct KGB in April 1995. In light of such connections, Stone said Kucherena might be acting as an intermediary for other parties who controlled access to Snowden in Russia. In any case, his concern was making a movie, and Kucherena delivered the exclusive access to Snowden.
Aside from being a skilled director, Stone is a shrewd producer who knows how to close a deal. He assessed, correctly as it turned out, that his project coupled with the payment to Kucherena would effectively block Sony’s competing project. Where the money went was far less clear.
Toward the end of our dinner, Stone told me that he did not know I was writing a book about Snowden until a few weeks earlier. He learned of my book from Snowden himself. He said Snowden had
“Is your script based on Kucherena’s Time of the Octopus?” I asked.
“No,” Stone replied. “I haven’t used it.”
He said that the payment was for what he termed “total access.” He explained that Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson, the producers of the James Bond franchise, had optioned Greenwald’s book No Place to Hide to make into a movie about Snowden for Sony. Stone said that the million-dollar deal with Kucherena effectively guaranteed that any competing project would not have access to Snowden. Sony consequently put the competing film on hold.
Lawyers often negotiate deals on behalf of a client, but blocking a competing film requires considerably more influence with the powers that be in Russia. Kucherena, though, was no ordinary lawyer. Among other influential positions, I noted earlier, he was on the public board of the Russian federal security bureau, which had assumed the domestic operations of the defunct KGB in April 1995. In light of such connections, Stone said Kucherena might be acting as an intermediary for other parties who controlled access to Snowden in Russia. In any case, his concern was making a movie, and Kucherena delivered the exclusive access to Snowden.
Aside from being a skilled director, Stone is a shrewd producer who knows how to close a deal. He assessed, correctly as it turned out, that his project coupled with the payment to Kucherena would effectively block Sony’s competing project. Where the money went was far less clear.
Toward the end of our dinner, Stone told me that he did not know I was writing a book about Snowden until a few weeks earlier. He learned of my book from Snowden himself. He said Snowden had
Epst_9780451494566_2p_all_r1.indd 252 9/30/16 8:13 AM
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_019740
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_019740
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