Steven Seagal created controversy last week in the Baltic nation of Estonia, but not for his cinematic efforts. The actor, better known for his Hollywood tough guy roles is also, it transpires, a blues singer and guitar player. But his attempts to bring his musical talent to Estonia has gone down badly in a country that has a fraught history with its eastern neighbour Russia, as Seagal has been vocal in his support of the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and his annexation of the Crimean peninsula.
The announcement of Seagal's headlining slot at Augustibluus, a blues festival held the beginning of August in the western town of Haapsalu for over 20 years, was met with a swift outcry, with Estonian rock singer Tõnis Mägi calling for a boycott. Estonia's foreign minister, Urmas Paet, told the Tallinn daily Delfi: "Steven Seagal has become active in politics in the last few months in a manner not befitting a world which honours states based on the rule of law."
The Soviet occupation of Estonia after the Second World War saw mass deportations of Estonians to Siberian gulags and general misery. Many Estonians conflate the Soviet Union with Russia and the fear of Russian tanks rolling over the horizon has never really abated.
The Ukraine crisis has made citizens and policymakers nervous, as Estonia has a sizable ethnic Russian minority and Putin's call to protect Russian populations in post-Soviet states has triggered alarm bells.
Seagal's friendship with Putin blossomed from a mutual love of martial arts. Last spring, Seagal helped the Russian government launch a new nationwide fitness programme and there have been numerous photo-ops of the two hanging out.
Seagal told Russian news outlet Rossiyskaya Gazeta: "He's one of the greatest world leaders alive today. I consider him my friend. But what has really rankled Estonians was Seagal's comment that Russia's annexation of Crimea was "entirely reasonable".
This was too much for the organisers of Augustibluus, who - after the downing of Malaysian Airlines flight mH17– announced Seagal would be dropped from their lineup.
"We hoped the Estonian public would first and foremost see Steven Seagal as an actor and a musician. It turns out what they saw was rather a politician and a henchman," festival director Indrek Ditman said in a press release. "To many in Estonia, it came as a major surprise that the action movie hero is a blues musician. Likewise, the organisers and numerous others were unpleasantly surprised by his political views and public statements."
There's no word yet on who will replace him at Augustibluus.