Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny became famous around the world for his courageous stands against the regime of Vladimir Putin. He was also really funny. Navalny flashed his trademark dark humor in public appearances, joking about things like being condemned to the infamous “Polar Wolf” prison in the Arctic Circle (“I am your new Santa Claus,” he tweeted) as part of his effort to prove that he didn’t fear Putin or his cronies. He was still cracking jokes and laughing in a court appearance the day before he died under mysterious circumstances at that prison.
Navalny got in one last laugh at his funeral on Friday. As his coffin was lowered into the ground, the tune playing in the background wasn’t some funeral dirge, but the theme from his favorite movie, Terminator 2: Judgment Day. It was the refrain that plays during the movie’s famous final scene, as Arnold Schwarzenegger’s soulful killer cyborg gives a thumbs-up while he is lowered into a vat of molten steel, sacrificing himself to save the future:
Navalny spokesperson Kira Yarmysh said in an X/Twitter post on Friday that “Alexei considered Terminator 2 the best film in the whole world” — a laudable opinion. (A less humorous song, Frank Sinatra’s “My Way,” also played as Navalny’s coffin descended.)
Navalny’s supporters remained defiant on Friday, even after their leader’s death and amid a dangerous environment for any kind of dissent.
Mourners stood in long lines to attend his memorial service at a church in Moscow, chanting his name as well as pro-democracy and anti-war slogans, despite a heavy police presence.
