Berlin 2026: Arundhati Roy pulls out over jury’s “jaw-dropping” comments on Gaza
Indian author and activist Arundhati Roy has pulled out of the Berlin Film Festival following comments made by the jury over Gaza.
Roy was due to attend the festival as the 1989 film, In Which Annie Give It Those Ones, which she wrote, was due to be screened as part of the Berlinale Classics.
Now, in a new open letter, Roy has said there was “something sweet and wonderful” about the invitation to participate, but confirmed she would no longer be taking part after director Wenders, who is leading the competition jury at this year’s festival, said films should “stay out of politics” in response to a question about Gaza.
At the press conference on February 12th, Wenders said that “movies can change the world” but “not in a political way”.
He later said, during the same event, in response to a question about Gaza, “We have to stay out of politics because if we make movies that are dedicatedly political, we enter the field of politics.”
The director added, “But we are the counterweight of politics, we are the opposite of politics. We have to do the work of people, not the work of politicians.”
As a result, Roy will be boycotting Berlin. She wrote (per The Wire), “This morning, like millions of people across the world, I heard the unconscionable statements made by members of the jury of the Berlin film festival when they were asked to comment about the genocide in Gaza.”
The author continued, “To hear them say that art should not be political is jaw-dropping. It is a way of shutting down a conversation about a crime against humanity even as it unfolds before us in real time – when artists, writers and film makers should be doing everything in their power to stop it.”
Roy also stated she is “profoundly disturbed by the positions taken by the German government and various German cultural institutions on Palestine,” but said audiences in Germany have typically given her “political solidarity” on the subject.
She added, “Let me say this clearly: what has happened in Gaza, what continues to happen, is a genocide of the Palestinian people by the State of Israel. It is supported and funded by the governments of the United States and Germany, as well as several other countries in Europe, which makes them complicit in the crime.”
Roy then said the filmmakers who “cannot stand up and say so” about Gaza, and also claimed “they should know that history will judge them”, as well as saying she is “shocked and disgusted” by their positions.
As it stands, Roy is the only name to have pulled out of the Berlin Film Festival so far. The prestigious event is set to conclude on February 22nd, 2026.
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