David Letterman, Rachel Maddow Talk Russia's Anti-Gay Laws, Putin's Shirtless Shots

David Letterman Hoped For An Olympics Boycott Over Russia's Anti-Gay Stance

Russia's controversial " gay propaganda" law has divided celebrities, athletes and other public figures ahead of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. But one late-night talk show icon has expressed a particularly strong opinion on the situation.

While interviewing Rachel Maddow on Jan. 23, David Letterman noted, "I was hoping that everybody would pull out and everybody would say 'This is not right. This is medieval times. We're not going.'" (The discussion begins at about 8:45)

For her part, Maddow said, "The athletes, including the gay athletes ... they want to compete in the Olympics. Being openly gay in Russia is itself an act of bravery right now ... simply being open about your sexual orientation is a one-finger salute to [Russian President] Vladimir Putin."

In addition, Maddow and Letterman shared a few laughs over Putin's vast collection of shirtless photos.

Before You Go

Chris Pine

Stars Sound Off On Russia's Anti-Gay Law

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