He’d flown with his Oscar dozens of times without issue, but one TSA officer’s decision at JFK has left it missing somewhere in Germany

An Oscar statuette is missing after a security incident at John F. Kennedy International Airport forced a filmmaker to check the award into the cargo hold of a Lufthansa flight to Germany. As detailed by BBC News, Pavel Talankin, who won the award for his documentary Mr Nobody Against Putin, had been carrying the statuette in his carry-on bag on Wednesday when he was stopped by the Transportation Security Administration. TSA officials claimed the award could be used as a weapon.

Talankin regularly travels with the Oscar to showcase it at events and screenings. During his recent trip to New York, he passed the award around to a group of university students during a Q&A session following a screening of his film.

The filmmaker, who does not speak fluent English, had assistance from his producer, Robin Hessman, who was on speakerphone with him and the TSA during the incident. Hessman noted that Talankin has flown with his Oscar and his BAFTA, both of which he won this year, across the United States and on international flights many times without any issues. She expressed frustration at the inconsistency, stating, “This wouldn’t have happened to Leonardo DiCaprio.”

TSA’s call set off a chain of events that ended with the Oscar vanishing in Germany

Since Talankin did not have a checked bag, Lufthansa staff stepped in to assist. The airline helped him pack the statuette into a box, using bubble wrap and tape to secure it before it was loaded into the cargo hold. Despite those efforts, the Oscar was missing when Talankin arrived in Germany. The incident has drawn attention to longstanding questions about how airlines handle cargo, amid Japan Airlines moving toward robotic baggage handlers at Haneda Airport.

Lufthansa has acknowledged the incident and is investigating the disappearance. The airline released a statement: “We deeply regret this situation. Our team is treating this matter with the utmost care and urgency, and we are conducting a comprehensive internal search to ensure the Oscar is found and returned as quickly as possible.” Questions about accountability in cargo and shipping have drawn scrutiny elsewhere too, with FedEx and UPS facing refund demands after the Supreme Court struck down improperly collected tariff levies.

The Academy Award statuette stands 13.5 inches tall and weighs 8.5 pounds. While the production cost of an Oscar is estimated at between $400 and $1,000, the award carries particular significance for Talankin. He directed and starred in Mr Nobody Against Putin, which documents the rise of war propaganda in a Russian school where he previously worked following the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Talankin is currently living in exile in Europe, as his documentary has been banned by Russia on the grounds that it “propagates extremism and terrorism.”

Lufthansa’s investigation is ongoing, and no update on the statuette’s location has been confirmed.