U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Anchorage, Alaska, U.S., August 15, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
On Instagram, the show "Puppet Regime" is using puppet theater to satirize political figures, from U.S. President Donald Trump to Russian President Vladimir Putin to Chinese President Xi Jinping. "Puppet Regime," however, wasn't created by professional comedians, but by the Eurasia Group — a geopolitical risk consultancy outfit founded by political scientist Ian Bremmer in 1998.
In an article published by the New York Times on February 16, reporter Kim Córdova emphasizes that "Puppet Regime" has a goal beyond being funny and entertaining: a desire to "defang authoritarian world leaders."
"If geopolitical consultants producing a puppet show conjures an image of Henry Kissinger with a sock on his hand squeaking an explanation of realpolitik," Córdova explains, "then you get it…. At its heart, 'Puppet Regime' follows the three principles that guide Eurasia Group: 'What the hell is happening in the world? How do we understand it? And how do we explain it?,' Bremmer said."
The Times reporter adds, "'Puppet Regime' follows in the satirical footsteps of other TV puppets, political and otherwise, including 'The Muppet Show,' 'Kukly' in Russia, 'Les Guignols' in France and 'Spitting Image' in Britain."
Comedian Rob Smigel, a former "Saturday Night Live" writer, told the Times that puppets work well in political satire because they give viewers, "a separation from reality that allows you to take bigger leaps."
Bremmer, according to Córdova, "is quick to brush off suggestions that 'Puppet Regime' might distract from Eurasia Group's core business or cause clients or world leaders to take their work less seriously."
Bremmer told the Times, "None of the heads of state that I meet with have a problem with it. None of the CEOs."
