Sean Penn starting filming a documentary about the mounting tension between Russia and Ukraine last November. According to a spokesman, the documentary is a VICE Studios Production “in association with VICE World News and Endeavor Content.”

When war broke out in Ukraine last week, Penn knew he had to be there. Just hours after the Russian invasion began, he was seen at a press briefing.

On Saturday, Penn tweeted about the war in Ukraine, calling Russian President Vladimir Putin’s actions, “a brutal mistake” and adding that if he doesn’t stop, it will be “a most horrible mistake for all of humankind.”

Ukraine is the tip of the spear for the democratic embrace of dreams. If we allow it to fight alone, our soul as America is lost. (2/2)

— Sean Penn (@SeanPenn) February 26, 2022

The Ukrainian government thanked Penn on Facebook for sharing their story with the world. A translation of the Facebook post explained that Penn “came to Kyiv to record all the events that are currently happening in Ukraine and to tell the world the truth about Russia’s invasion of our country.” The post went on to state, “Sean Penn demonstrates the courage that many others, especially western politicians lack.”

While he was in Ukraine, Penn met with journalists as well as members of the military in order to find out how they were defending their country. He also met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. 

Zelensky later posted a video of his meeting with Penn on Instagram. Their conversation was muted, but he wrote a caption that reads, “The more people know about the war in Ukraine, the higher the likelihood of stopping Russia!”

On February 28, Penn shared a picture of himself walking on the side of the road, pulling a taped up suitcase behind him. There were cars bumper to bumper as far as the eye can see into the distance.

Penn explained that he and his colleagues abandoned their car while trying to leave Ukraine via Poland. They walked to the Polish boarder, passing car after car. Penn pointed out that most of the cars were filled with women and children and that most of the people fleeing the country didn’t seem to have any luggage with them.

Myself & two colleagues walked miles to the Polish border after abandoning our car on the side of the road. Almost all the cars in this photo carry women & children only, most without any sign of luggage, and a car their only possession of value. pic.twitter.com/XSwCDgYVSH

— Sean Penn (@SeanPenn) February 28, 2022

It has been confirmed that Penn not only safely made it out of Ukraine, but he is also back home in Los Angeles. He and his estranged wife, Leila George, were spotted walking their dogs on March 2nd. George filed for divorce from Penn in October, but the couple has been spotted together several times in 2022.