Pedro Almodóvar says Trump will 'go down in history as a catastrophe,' dedicates film award to the 'thousands deported'

Famed director Pedro Almodóvar says President Trump will "go down in history as a catastrophe," dedicating a film award to the "thousands deported in recent weeks," as well as Harvard University and to a transgender Hollywood star.

"I wish to express my gratitude for this award; however, I admit there have been moments where I have doubted about coming to accept it, in the same way that I would go to... Russia or North Korea," Almodóvar said Monday while being honored with the Lincoln Center's Chaplin Award in New York City.

"I doubted if it was appropriate to come to a country ruled by a narcissistic, authoritarian lunatic who doesn't respect human rights and who it seems nothing can stop in his race to change the fragile world balance," Almodóvar, who was born in Spain, said to applause. 

"Trump and his friends — millionaires and oligarchs — cannot convince us that the reality we are seeing with our own eyes is the opposite of what we are living, however much he may twist the words, claiming that they mean the opposite of what they do."

"Immigrants are not criminals," he exclaimed.

Trump has signed multiple executive orders targeting immigration, and his administration has touted its deportation efforts, many of which are being challenged in court. 

Pushing back on Trump's sharp criticism of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky following Russia's 2022 invasion of the country, Almodóvar said, "Zelensky is not a dictator. [Russian President Vladimir Putin] is. And however much Trump denies it, it was Russia that invaded Ukraine."

Almodóvar also defended "Euphoria" star Hunter Schafer. The transgender performer said in February she had been issued a U.S. passport with a male gender marker.

"That cruel whim by trans bureaucrats, that there are only two genders, does not change the nature of the human being and its sexual diversity," Almodóvar said. 

"Mr. Trump: I'm talking to you. And I hope that you hear what I'm going to say to you," the 75-year-old "Talk to Her" director said. 

"You will go down in history as the greatest mistake of our time. Your naiveté is only comparable to your violence. You will go down in history as one of the greatest dangers to humanity in this beginning of the century. You will go down in history as a catastrophe," Almodóvar said.

Almodóvar said that "given the circumstances," he wished to dedicate his award to "the thousands deported in recent weeks, to the beautiful Hunter Schafer as well, and to Harvard University" for the school's "determination to not surrender to Trump's war on knowledge and culture which remain the best weapons to fight lies and misinformation."

Earlier this month, Harvard University rejected policy change demands from the White House, to which the administration responded by freezing billions of dollars in federal funding. Harvard has sued the Trump administration as a result.