Queer actors, including Elliot Page, Joe Locke and Miriam Margolyes, join growing boycott of Israeli film institutions
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A growing number of queer actors have joined nearly 4,000 film industry professionals in signing a pledge to boycott Israeli film institutions accused of complicity in what signatories describe as genocide and apartheid against the Palestinian people.
The open letter, published by the campaign group Film Workers for Palestine on 8 September, has drawn support from a wide spectrum of actors, directors, and producers. Among the queer stars who have signed are Elliot Page, Joe Locke, Bowen Yang, Indya Moore, Miriam Margolyes, Emma D’Arcy, Joel Kim Booster and Cynthia Nixon.
The pledge states that signatories will not “screen films, appear at or otherwise work with” Israeli film institutions - including festivals, broadcasters, cinemas, and production companies - that are “implicated in genocide and apartheid” or that partner with the Israeli government. The campaign draws inspiration from the 1980s movement Filmmakers United Against Apartheid, which refused to distribute films in apartheid South Africa.
The letter cites rulings from the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which earlier this year found a “plausible risk of genocide” in Gaza and deemed Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories unlawful. The ICJ also noted systemic discrimination based on race, religion, or ethnic origin.
“This refusal takes aim at institutional complicity, not identity,” the group clarified, noting that the pledge does not prohibit collaboration with individual Israeli artists. Instead, it targets institutions that, according to the group, “whitewash or justify” state violence.
The move comes amid intensifying global scrutiny of Israel’s military actions in Gaza following the October 2023 Hamas attacks and Israel’s subsequent offensive. The humanitarian toll in Gaza has sparked widespread condemnation, with artists, academics, and civil society groups increasingly vocal in their opposition.
