The red carpet and the awards show have long doubled as a platform for celebrities to make a political statement, and this year’s Emmy Awards is no exception. On September 14 (Pacific Standard Time), some of Hollywood’s most outspoken stars took to the awards show to advocate for Palestine and demand a ceasefire in its ongoing war with Israel.
Ruth Negga (Presumed Innocent), Chris Perfetti (Abbott Elementary), and Aimee Lou Wood (The White Lotus) all appeared on the Emmys red carpet wearing red Artsts4Ceasefire pins. Meg Stalter (Hacks) took it one step further, carrying a purse with the label “Cease Fire” written across it in black marker. “It’s most important to stick up for people and for peace and to ask for an end to war,” Stalter told Variety. “What’s the point of being at these big events if you’re not going to use your privilege?”
Javier Bardem (Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story) wore a Palestinian keffiyeh on the red carpet and called for an end to active warfare. “At the end of August, the IAGS, the International Association of Genocide Scholars who studied throughly the concept of genocide, called what is going on in Gaza today a genocide,” Bardem told The Hollywood Reporter. “That’s why we ask for the commercial and diplomatic blockade and sanctions on Israel to stop this genocide. Free Palestine.” The actor also emphasized how he wouldn’t work with any company that did not condemn Israel’s actions in Gaza. “Me not getting jobs is absolutely irrelevant compared to what is going on there,” said Bardem.
Hannah Einbinder, who won Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy for her role as Ava Daniels in Hacks, used her acceptance speech to show her support for the people of Gaza as well as those impacted by the Trump administration’s immigration policies. “I just want to say: Go Birds, fuck ICE, and free Palestine,” Einbinder said before leaving the stage. Einbinder is one of the main actors supporting Artists4Ceasefire, posting a call-to-action on Instagram to spotlight the “over two million Palestinians in Gaza [facing] unprecedented levels of starvation.”
On the week of the Emmys, 3,900 industry names signed a pledge organized by Film Workers for Palestine, declaring that they refused to work with Israeli institutions and film companies that are “implicated in genocide and apartheid against the Palestinian people.” The list of signees includes Bardem, Einbinder, Wood, Tilda Swinton, Olivia Colman, Emma Stone, Ayo Edebiri, Gael García Bernal, Mark Ruffalo, and more.
In response, Paramount issued a statement condemning the group’s boycott of the Israeli film industry.
