Following a similar statement from Paramount, here’s Warner Bros, under the leadership of David Zaslav, pushing back against the largest boycott in recent entertainment history.
After more than 4000 industry figures pledged not to work with Israeli film institutions and creatives, Warners has made its opposition crystal clear, issuing a statement condemning the entire movement (via Variety)
Our policies prohibit discrimination of any kind, including discrimination based on race, religion, national origin or ancestry. We believe a boycott of Israeli film institutions violates our policies. While we respect the rights of individuals and groups to express their views and advocate for causes, we will continue to align our business practices with the requirements of our policies and the law.
Warners is now the second major studio to comment publicly on the boycott. The pledge, organized by Film Workers for Palestine and published two weeks ago, initially featured 1,200 signatories, only to now have close 4000.
The creatives who signed their names to the cause include filmmakers Yorgos Lanthimos, Ava DuVernay, Boots Riley, and Adam McKay, as well as actors Olivia Colman, Mark Ruffalo, Riz Ahmed, Tilda Swinton, Javier Bardem, Emma Stone, Andrew Garfield, Harris Dickinson, Guy Pearce, Jonathan Glazer, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Abbi Jacobson, Eric Andre, Elliot Page, Payal Kapadia, Joaquin Phoenix and Rooney Mara, and others.
The pledge calls on industry professionals to refuse work with Israeli creatives “implicated in genocide and apartheid against the Palestinian people,” citing complicity through “whitewashing or justifying genocide and apartheid, and/or partnering with the government committing them.”
In a statement in response to the pledge, the Israeli Film and TV Producers Association said, “The signatories of this petition are targeting the wrong people.”
For decades, we Israeli artists, storytellers, and creators have been the primary voices allowing audiences to hear and witness the complexity of the conflict, including Palestinian narratives and criticism of Israeli state policies.
We work with Palestinian creators, telling our shared stories and promoting peace and an end to violence through thousands of films, TV series, and documentaries. This call for a boycott is profoundly misguided.
What happens next is anybody’s guess, but the other major studios need to eventually pick a side in this matter. I gather they’ll probably align with Warner Bros and Paramount on this one. Just a hunch.
Edward Berger seems to have settled on what comes next. His Lance Armstrong biopic, starring Austin Butler, is now holding casting calls, with production eyed for January.