Documentary filmmaker Michael Moore told Hill.TV on Friday that his support for Sen. Bernie Sanders Bernie SandersSirota reacts to report of harassment, doxing by Harris supporters Republicans not immune to the malady that hobbled Democrats The Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by Facebook - Republicans lawmakers rebuke Trump on election MORE (I-Vt.) dates back to the presidential candidate's time as a mayor.

When asked why he endorsed Sanders last weekend, Moore said, “I’ve always been with Bernie. I’ve been for Bernie since he was the mayor of Burlington, Vermont.”

The Academy Award winner endorsed Sanders alongside progressive star Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Alexandria Ocasio-CortezOn The Money: Anxious Democrats push for vote on COVID-19 aid | Pelosi, Mnuchin ready to restart talks | Weekly jobless claims increase | Senate treads close to shutdown deadline McCarthy says there will be a peaceful transition if Biden wins Anxious Democrats amp up pressure for vote on COVID-19 aid MORE (D-N.Y.) during a rally Saturday in Queens, N.Y.

In explaining why he decided to back Sanders over progressive rival Sen. Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth WarrenOvernight Defense: Appeals court revives House lawsuit against military funding for border wall | Dems push for limits on transferring military gear to police | Lawmakers ask for IG probe into Pentagon's use of COVID-19 funds On The Money: Half of states deplete funds for Trump's 0 unemployment expansion | EU appealing ruling in Apple tax case | House Democrats include more aid for airlines in coronavirus package Warren, Khanna request IG investigation into Pentagon's use of coronavirus funds MORE (D-Mass.), Moore argued that the self-declared democratic socialist is best equipped to address an “economic system that has caused great harm.”

“It’s unfair, it’s unjust, it’s not democratic, it’s cruel,” Moore said about the U.S. economic system.

Moore, who backed Sanders over former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham ClintonBloomberg rolls out M ad buy to boost Biden in Florida Hillicon Valley: Productivity, fatigue, cybersecurity emerge as top concerns amid pandemic | Facebook critics launch alternative oversight board | Google to temporarily bar election ads after polls close Trump pledges to make Juneteenth a federal holiday, designate KKK a terrorist group in pitch to Black voters MORE in the 2016 Democratic presidential primary, said he was heartened by Sanders’s return to the campaign trial following a recent heart attack.

"If you go online and watch the whole speech, you'll see actually a very different speech and a slightly different Bernie," Moore told Hill.TV. “If you have an experience — an incident or whatever — that kind of reminds you that we are mortal."

—Tess Bonn