Javier Bardem Slams Zionist Crimes at Emmys, Calls for Global Sanctions

Wearing a Palestinian keffiyeh on the Emmy stage, Spanish Oscar-winner Javier Bardem made headlines as he delivered a fiery denunciation of Israel’s actions in Gaza, pledging full support to Film Workers for Palestine and vowing never to collaborate with institutions complicit in what he called genocide.

“Here I am today, denouncing the genocide in Gaza,” Bardem told Variety. “The International Association of Genocide Scholars has studied this thoroughly and declared it is genocide. That’s why we ask for a commercial and diplomatic blockade and also sanctions on Israel to stop the genocide. Free Palestine.”

Bardem stressed that accountability must extend into the film industry itself: “I cannot work with someone who justifies or supports the genocide. That’s as simple as that.”

His remarks come after more than 3,900 figures in cinema and television signed a pledge refusing to work with Israeli institutions or companies tied to the apartheid system. Organized by Film Workers for Palestine, the initiative denounces whitewashing and partnerships that help normalize the occupation.

Hollywood studio Paramount quickly pushed back, rejecting the boycott and claiming that refusing to work with Israeli filmmakers would “silence creative voices.” The company argued instead for “more engagement and communication.”

Bardem directly countered that line of defense, clarifying that the boycott targets institutions, not individuals: “They are complicit and are white-washing or justifying the genocide and its apartheid regime.”

He reiterated his stance: “We shouldn’t be able to do that — in this industry or any other industry.”

Bardem’s call was echoed by prominent names in cinema, including Yorgos Lanthimos, Ava DuVernay, Asif Kapadia, Olivia Colman, Adam McKay, Mark Ruffalo, Riz Ahmed, Tilda Swinton, Gael García Bernal, and Emma Stone.

The actor, nominated for his role in Netflix’s Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, used Hollywood’s global stage to transform an awards night into a platform for justice, spotlighting Palestine and exposing what he called the Zionist regime’s crimes.