Susan Sarandon criticizes ICE, praises Spain for Gaza support
Actress Susan Sarandon called ICE “very unconstitutional” and accused the agency of “illegal” practices during a press conference in Barcelona.
Susan Sarandon has never shied away from speaking her mind, and she says it continues to cost her work.
In a press conference at the Venice Film Festival on Sunday, Sept. 6, the “Thelma and Louise” star, 79, said her vocal support for Palestine still causes her to lose work in Hollywood.
“I’ve still had movies taken away recently, because there are agencies that are telling people not to hire me still,” she said. “But that’s the power structure. I think [among] the people, certainly internationally, I feel welcome.”
The Oscar winner went on to say that she faces resistance when it comes to being hired by major studios, adding that people in “very strongly held positions” in the industry have “not relaxed their feelings towards me.”
Sarandon has long been outspoken in her support of Palestine, and advocacy for a ceasefire in Gaza, in the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, assault on Israel that killed at least 1,200 people. Gazan health authorities estimate that more than 73,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s military campaign, with more than half of Gaza’s population facing “severe deficiencies in shelter conditions or access to essential services and non-food items,” according to the United Nations.
In November 2023, the star faced criticism after she attended a pro-Palestine rally where she said, “There are a lot of people afraid of being Jewish at this time and are getting a taste of what it feels like to be a Muslim in this country, so often subjected to violence.” She was later dropped as a client by United Talent Agency.
At the time, Sarandon apologized for the comments. She said that she intended to “communicate my concern for an increase in hate crimes” against Jewish Americans but acknowledged her “phrasing was a terrible mistake, as it implies that until recently Jews have been strangers to persecution, when the opposite is true.”
Sarandon later told Variety in 2024 that she had “lost work” and become estranged from “friends and family,” but had “also gained inspiration from those who care enough about humanity and believe enough in the possibility of a better world to raise their voices to stop genocide.”
In 2025, a United Nations Commission of Inquiry concluded that Israel has committed genocide in Gaza, with Navi Pillay, head of the Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and a former International Criminal Court judge, saying that the “Israeli authorities at the highest echelons” have “orchestrated a genocidal campaign for almost two years now with the specific intent to destroy the Palestinian group in Gaza.”
Israeli President Isaac Herzog condemned the report, which Israel’s ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva called “scandalous” and “fake.”
Director ‘didn’t listen to the warnings’ to avoid hiring Susan Sarandon
During a conversation at the Spanish Film Academy’s Goya Awards in March, Sarandon alleged she was “fired by my agency, specifically for marching and speaking out about Gaza, for asking for a ceasefire,” adding that it became “impossible for me to even be on television.”
“I couldn’t do any major film, anything connected with Hollywood,” she said.
Sarandon has also been outspoken when it comes to U.S. politics throughout her career and in 2018 was arrested in Washington, D.C., during a protest against President Donald Trump’s immigration policy.
The actress stepped out at the Venice Film Festival for the romantic drama “The Echo Chamber,” which also stars Oscar-winning actress Alicia Vikander. Speaking at the festival, Sarandon thanked the movie’s Italian director, Andrea Pallaoro, because he “didn’t listen to the warnings” not to hire her.
In recent years, Sarandon has also appeared in films like the 2023 DC superhero movie “Blue Beetle” and the Tyler Perry Netflix war film “The Six Triple Eight.”
Contributing: Emma Farge, Reuters