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Susan Sarandon and Melissa Barrera among Hollywood figures facing blowback for stances on Israel and Jews
(JTA) — The star of a blockbuster horror franchise and an Oscar-winning veteran actress saw their careers take a hit this week over their public comments on Jews and Israel in some of the most high-profile examples yet of how the ongoing Israel-Hamas war has impacted Hollywood.
Variety reported Tuesday that Melissa Barrera was recently fired from the upcoming seventh installment of the “Scream” series over pro-Palestinian social media posts that the film’s producers implied had crossed the line into antisemitism.
The “In The Heights” star had reportedly posted that “Western media only shows” the Israeli side of the conflict, adding, “Why do they do that, I will let you deduce for yourself” — wording that flirted with dog-whistle stereotypes about Jews controlling the media. In other pro-Palestinian posts, she shared an article from Jewish Currents, the left-wing magazine, that said Israel was carrying out genocide and also shared an accusation that it was committing “ethnic cleansing” in the Gaza Strip. The posts were no longer visible as of Wednesday.
Barrera had starred in the recent fifth and sixth “Scream” movies, which were released in 2022 and 2023 and were both big hits.
Spyglass Media Group, the production company behind “Scream VII,” told Variety in a statement: “We have zero tolerance for antisemitism or the incitement of hate in any form, including false references to genocide, ethnic cleansing, Holocaust distortion or anything that flagrantly crosses the line into hate speech.” Spyglass’s co-founder and current CEO, Gary Barber, is Jewish and signed a Hollywood open letter in the immediate aftermath of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel that stated in part, “We unequivocally stand in solidarity with Israel in the global fight against terrorism. Am Yisrael Chai.”
The film’s director, Christopher Landon, posted and then deleted a message Tuesday to the social network X with a broken-heart emoji. “Everything sucks. Stop yelling. This was not my decision to make,” he wrote. Variety also reported that Barrera appeared to no longer be working with a publicist following her firing.
Barrera’s “Scream” co-star, Jenna Ortega, also announced this week she is not returning to the next installment. Ortega has also been an outspoken pro-Palestinian advocate online, although earlier rumors that she left over objections to Barrera’s firing were disputed by multiple outlets, which instead cited scheduling conflicts.
Susan Sarandon was dropped this week by United Talent Agency over comments she made at a pro-Palestinian rally, including that American Jews facing antisemitism are now “getting a taste of what it feels like to be Muslim in this country.”
Sarandon, who won an Oscar for her role in “Dead Man Walking” and recently starred in the superhero movie “Blue Beetle,” has long been a vocal left-wing activist. She has appeared at several pro-Palestinian rallies since the war broke out, but her recent comments comparing Jews and Muslims appear to have been the last straw for UTA. On Instagram, Sarandon has also reposted anti-Israel messages from former Pink Floyd frontman Roger Waters, who has been accused of antisemitism in his activism.
Susan Sarandon joins flight attendants, members, and supporters of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA on the picket line outside Netflix and Warner Bros. on August 17, 2023 in New York City. (Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images)
While Barrera and Sarandon’s comments differed in approach and tone, reactions to them pointed to what reports have indicated is a larger rift developing over Israel in the entertainment industry. The Writers Guild of America declined to sign a statement on the war last month, while industry leaders including Israeli actress Gal Gadot helped organize a controversial screening of footage from the Hamas Oct. 7 attacks that was met with violence and condemned by other industry figures including director Boots Riley. Comedian Dave Chappelle lambasted Israel onstage during a Boston show last month, prompting some fan walkouts.
And after an A-list agent, Maha Dakhil, reposted several Instagram messages last month that included the statement “You’re currently learning who supports genocide,” she faced severe blowback and resigned from top industry leadership roles. Tom Cruise, a client of Dakhil’s, reportedly personally intervened at her agency, Creative Artists Agency, to help save her standing in the company. She has since met with top Jewish leaders, including Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt.
Other talents that have reportedly lost Hollywood representation over their Israel comments include the entrepreneurs Saira Rao and Regina Jackson, founders of Race2Dinner, an organization that staged pricey antiracist dinner parties. Rao posted on X that the two were dropped by CAA over “our words denouncing genocide.”
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The post Susan Sarandon and Melissa Barrera among Hollywood figures facing blowback for stances on Israel and Jews appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Treasure Trove spotlights a menorah designed in the early years of the State of Israel
This laurel branch Hanukkah menorah, designed by artist Maurice Ascalon (1913-2003), won first prize at the 1950 Tel Aviv Design Competition. Between 2,000 and 4,000 of these were made by the Pal-Bell factory in Israel, and they were sold not only in Israel but in select department stores around the world, including Macy’s in New York and Harrods in London.
The shape of the oil containers resembles ancient Roman lamps, while the large pitcher is a reference to the single jug of oil that lasted for eight days that is at the heart of the Hanukkah story.
These hanukkiyot were manufactured out of cast bronze with a green patina that was created using reactive chemicals, a process developed by Ascalon, resulting in an antique verdigris look.
Ascalon, who was born in Hungary and originally named Moshe Klein, immigrated to Palestine in 1934 after training in Brussels and Milan. He started the Pal-Bell Company in the late 1930s for the production of ritual and secular decorative items. “Pal” is short for Palestine and “Bell” is short for bellezza, Italian for beauty and an allusion to his time in Milan where the artist learned and perfected his sculpting skills. During Israel’s War of Independence in 1948, Ascalon designed munitions for the Israeli army and, at the request of the Israeli government, retrofitted his factory to produce arms for the war effort.
Ascalon closed Pal-Bell and moved to the United States in 1956, where he taught sculpture at the University of Judaism in Los Angeles and opened Ascalon Studios, which produces large-scale sculptures for public spaces and houses of worship.
The studio, which is now run by Ascalon’s son David and his grandson Eric, was retooled during the COVID pandemic to manufacture safety boxes that allowed health-care workers to assist a patient on a ventilator while minimizing exposure.
Treasure Trove wishes you a happy Hanukkah , which starts on Dec. 25. This year, as Peter, Paul and Mary sang, “Light one candle for the terrible sacrifice, justice and freedom demand. Don’t let the light go out!”
The post Treasure Trove spotlights a menorah designed in the early years of the State of Israel appeared first on The Canadian Jewish News.
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Germany: 5 Killed, Scores Wounded after Saudi Man Plows Car Into Christmas crowd
Magdeburg Christmas market, December 21, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Christian Mang
i24 News – A suspected terrorist plowed a vehicle into a crowd at a Christmas market in the German city of Magdeburg, west of the capital Berlin, killing at least five and injuring dozens more.
Local police confirmed that the suspect was a Saudi national born in 1974 and acting alone.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz expressed his concern about the incident, saying that “reports from Magdeburg suggest something bad. My thoughts are with the victims and their families.”
Police declined to give casualty numbers, confirming only a large-scale operation at the market, where people had gathered to celebrate in the days leading up to the Christmas holidays.
The post Germany: 5 Killed, Scores Wounded after Saudi Man Plows Car Into Christmas crowd first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Syria’s New Rulers Name HTS Commander as Defense Minister
A person waves a flag adopted by the new Syrian rulers, as people gather during a celebration called by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) near the Umayyad Mosque, after the ousting of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, in Damascus, Syria, Photo: December 20, 2024. REUTERS/Ammar Awad/File Photo
Syria’s new rulers have appointed Murhaf Abu Qasra, a leading figure in the insurgency which toppled Bashar al-Assad, as defense minister in the interim government, an official source said on Saturday.
Abu Qasra, who is also known by the nom de guerre Abu Hassan 600, is a senior figure in the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group which led the campaign that ousted Assad this month. He led numerous military operations during Syria’s revolution, the source said.
Syria’s de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa discussed “the form of the military institution in the new Syria” during a meeting with armed factions on Saturday, state news agency SANA reported.
Abu Qasra during the meeting sat next to Sharaa, also known by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Golani, photos published by SANA showed.
Prime Minister Mohammed al-Bashir said this week that the defense ministry would be restructured using former rebel factions and officers who defected from Assad’s army.
Bashir, who formerly led an HTS-affiliated administration in the northwestern province of Idlib, has said he will lead a three-month transitional government. The new administration has not declared plans for what will happen after that.
Earlier on Saturday, the ruling General Command named Asaad Hassan al-Shibani as foreign minister, SANA said. A source in the new administration told Reuters that this step “comes in response to the aspirations of the Syrian people to establish international relations that bring peace and stability.”
Shibani, a 37-year-old graduate of Damascus University, previously led the political department of the rebels’ Idlib government, the General Command said.
Sharaa’s group was part of al Qaeda until he broke ties in 2016. It had been confined to Idlib for years until going on the offensive in late November, sweeping through the cities of western Syria and into Damascus as the army melted away.
Sharaa has met with a number of international envoys this week. He has said his primary focus is on reconstruction and achieving economic development and that he is not interested in engaging in any new conflicts.
Syrian rebels seized control of Damascus on Dec. 8, forcing Assad to flee after more than 13 years of civil war and ending his family’s decades-long rule.
Washington designated Sharaa a terrorist in 2013, saying al Qaeda in Iraq had tasked him with overthrowing Assad’s rule and establishing Islamic sharia law in Syria. US officials said on Friday that Washington would remove a $10 million bounty on his head.
The war has killed hundreds of thousands of people, caused one of the biggest refugee crises of modern times and left cities bombed to rubble and the economy hollowed out by global sanctions.
The post Syria’s New Rulers Name HTS Commander as Defense Minister first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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