Television’s biggest stars have used this year’s Emmy awards to speak out against Israel’s war in Gaza, either through fashion on the red carpet or fiery acceptance speeches.
Hacks actor Hannah Einbinder, who won best supporting actress in a comedy, wore a red Artists4Ceasefire pin, as did White Lotus stars Aimee Lou Wall and Natasha Rothwell, Ruth Negga of Presumed Innocent and Chris Perfetti from Abbott Elementary.
The pin asks that the US government call for an “an immediate de-escalation and ceasefire in Gaza and Israel before another life is lost”.
Spanish actor Javier Bardem, nominated this year for his performance in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, wore a keffiyeh to the Emmys, and said on the red carpet that he “cannot work with someone who justifies or supports the genocide”, while Hacks actor Megan Stalter wore a purse with “Ceasefire!” written on it in marker.
Ending her acceptance speech, Einbinder said: “Go birds, fuck Ice and free Palestine,” just before the music played her out.
Backstage, Einbinder told media: “I have friends in Gaza who are working as frontline workers, as doctors, right now in the north of Gaza, to provide care for pregnant women, and [working] for schoolchildren to create schools in the refugee camps.
“It’s an issue that’s really close to my heart for many reasons. I feel like it is my obligation as a Jewish person to distinguish Jews from the state of Israel because our religion and our culture is such an importantt and longstanding … institution that is really separate to the ethno-nationalist state.”
Last week, Einbinder was one of thousands of film industry professioners – including Bardem, Ava DuVernay, Joaquin Phoenix, Rooney Mara, Emma Stone, Olivia Colman and Tilda Swinton – who signed the Film Workers for Palestine pledge vowing not to work with Israeli film institutions.
At the Emmys, Einbinder said: “Boycotting is an effective tool to create pressure on the powers that be to meet the moment. The Film Workers for Palestine boycott does not boycott individuals; it only boycotts institutions that are directly complicit in the genocide … I think it’s an important measure, so I was happy to be a part of it.”
On the red carpet, Bardem said he “will never work with some companies now [who] are not condemning the genocide in Gaza”.
“Me not getting jobs is absolutely irrelevant compared to what is going on there,” he added.
Since 2023, the Artists4Ceasefire pin has become a red carpet staple, with celebrities wearing it to ceremonies including the Oscars and last year’s Emmy awards.
Artists4Ceasefire state their pin is “here to lend our voices and our platforms to amplify the global call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, the return of all hostages, and the immediate delivery of humanitarian aid to the civilians in Gaza. We stand for our common humanity and a future rooted in freedom, justice, dignity and peace for all people.”
