Thor Leonardo Halvorssen Mendoza (born 1976;[1][2] Spanish pronunciation: [ˈtoɾ (x)alˈβoɾsen])[a] is a Venezuelan-born human rights advocate and film producer with contributions in the field of public policy.

[10][14][15] While attending a peaceful protest of the Venezuelan recall referendum of 2004, Halvorssen's mother, Hilda Mendoza Denham, a British subject, was wounded by a gunshot.

In 2001, Halvorssen stated that, "Liberty of opinion, speech, and expression is indispensable to a free and, in the deepest sense, progressive society.

"[29] Halvorssen stepped down as head of FIRE in March 2004 to join its Board of Advisors and announced the creation of the international group Human Rights Foundation.

[1] At the helm of HRF Halvorssen repeatedly lobbied and advocated for the release of Chinese political prisoner Liu Xiaobo.

[37] Halvorssen has criticised several celebrities like Jennifer Lopez, Erykah Baduh and Mariah Carey for accepting payments for their performances in countries governed by authoritarian leaders like Russia.

[43] Halvorssen is a critic of Hugo Chávez,[44] and has written on Venezuela’s anti-Semitism and the assault on democracy and individual rights in Latin America.

[48][49] In the same manner Halvorssen has exposed payments from dictators to Jennifer Lopez, Erykah Baduh, Mariah Carey, Nelly Furtado, and 50 Cent.

Wired Magazine blogger David Rowan praised the event for its sessions and having sponsors like Peter Thiel, "if the global human-rights movement were to create its own unified representative body, it would look something like this.

Participants include Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Aliokhina, Lubna al-Hussein, Aung San Suu Kyi, Ai Weiwei, Wael Ghonim, Jimmy Wales, Elie Wiesel, Marina Nemat, Peter Thiel, Julian Assange, Václav Havel, Garry Kasparov, Leopoldo López, Lech Wałęsa, and Mikhail Khodorkovskii.

[54][55] In 2006, Halvorssen executive produced Hammer & Tickle, a film about the power of humor, ridicule, and satire as the language of truth in the Soviet Union.

[56] Halvorssen co-produced the film Freedom's Fury which was executive produced by Lucy Liu, Quentin Tarantino, and Andrew Vajna.

[58] Halvorssen produced The Dissident in 2020, a film about the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, directed by Bryan Fogel.

[61] The magazine The Economist pointed out that the Oslo Freedom Forum strucks a different tone than organisations like Amnestry International or Human Rights Watch.

"Given his conservative ideas, Mr Halvorssen's list of heroes and rogues might differ from that of say, Claudio Cordone, the acting head of Amnesty".