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The U.K. group Lawyers for Israel cautioned that the pledge risks breaching the Equality Act of 2010, while the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights under Law in Washington, D.C., said similar prohibitions exist under U.S. federal and state civil rights statutes.
By Shula Rosen
Warner Bros. Discovery has publicly opposed a pledge circulating in the entertainment industry that calls for a boycott of Israeli film institutions, saying such actions conflict with the company’s anti-discrimination policies.
The studio follows Paramount in calling out efforts to bar work with Israeli artists over the Gaza war.
“Warner Bros. Discovery is committed to fostering an inclusive and respectful environment for its employees, collaborators, and stakeholders,” a company spokesperson said in a statement. “Our policies prohibit discrimination of any kind, including discrimination based on race, religion, national origin, or ancestry. We believe a boycott of Israeli film institutions violates our policies. While we respect the rights of individuals and groups to express their views and advocate for causes, we will continue to align our business practices with the requirements of our policies and the law.”
The statement came in response to a campaign organized by Film Workers for Palestine, whose pledge—now signed by more than 5,000 people, including actors Olivia Colman, Emma Stone, Mark Ruffalo, Tilda Swinton, Javier Bardem, and Joaquin Phoenix—urges artists to refuse cooperation with Israeli film organizations allegedly “implicated in genocide and apartheid against the Palestinian people.”
The document names several Israeli film festivals and cultural institutions but says it targets “institutional complicity, not identity.”
Legal experts in both the United Kingdom and the United States have warned that adherence to such a boycott could violate anti-discrimination laws.
The U.K. group Lawyers for Israel cautioned that the pledge risks breaching the Equality Act of 2010, while the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law in Washington, D.C., said similar prohibitions exist under U.S. federal and state civil rights statutes.
Paramount Pictures was the first major studio to reject the initiative last month. “Silencing individual creative artists based on their nationality does not promote better understanding or advance the cause of peace,” said Paramount executive Melissa Zukerman. “The global entertainment industry should be encouraging artists to tell their stories and share their ideas with audiences throughout the world.”
More than 1,200 other industry figures—including Liev Schreiber, Mayim Bialik, and Debra Messing—have also signed an open letter rejecting the boycott. Warner Bros. Discovery’s statement makes it the second major studio to publicly distance itself from the campaign, affirming that it will not participate in any measure targeting Israeli institutions.
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