Paramount has become the first major Hollywood studio to condemn a boycott of Israeli film institutions supported by more than 4,000 actors and directors.
The pushback by the American film production and distribution company comes amid international opprobrium against the nearly two-year-old war against Hamas in Gaza.
In a statement on Friday, the studio said it believed in “the power of storytelling to connect and inspire people, promote mutual understanding and preserve the moments, ideas and events that shape the world we share,” adding that it disagreed “with recent efforts to boycott Israeli filmmakers.
“Silencing individual creative artists based on their nationality does not promote better understanding or advance the cause of peace,” the statement continued. “We need more engagement and communication—not less.”
Among the pledges’ signatories initiated by Film Workers For Palestine are actors Olivia Colman, Emma Stone, Mark Ruffalo, Tilda Swinton, Riz Ahmed, Javier Bardem, Joaquin Phoenix, Emma D’Arcy, Eric Andre, Elliot Page and Cynthia Nixon.
The unequivocal response against the boycott by the studio under its new owner, David Ellison, comes a month after an $8 billion merger with the media company Skydance.
