Ethan Hawke says America is no longer a free country: “There’s a fear in the air”
Ethan Hawke has condemned the current political climate in the United States.
Hawke was speaking at the Sundance Film Festival for the premiere of his new movie, The Weight, just days after 38-year-old intensive care nurse Alex Pretti was killed by ICE agents in Minneapolis.
The death of Pretti took place just weeks after Reneé Good was also killed by an ICE official in Minneapolis on January 7th, 2026.
Now, while speaking to Variety on the red carpet at Sundance, Hawke slammed the current adminstration under Donald Trump, saying via The Daily Beast, “It’s entirely possible that Trump is doing us a great favor by teaching America what oligarchy means.” Hawke added, “I think a lot of young people, myself included, didn’t even know what it meant.”
“I never felt scared about what I was going to say until the last couple of years,” the Oscar-nominated star admitted, before stating that he’s had to be “careful” due to the potential consequences of his words.
“There’s a kind of fear in the air that I’ve never felt before, and it’s not America,” Hawke explained of the current political landscape in the United States.
He continued, “To get to be an artist in a free country, I’ve had enough of an education to know what a privilege that is. And I don’t feel that way anymore. And that’s something that has to change.”
Elsewhere at Sundance, Natalie Portman condemned the actions of ICE, stating, “What’s going on in our country right now is absolutely horrific, with the federal government, Trump’s government, Kristi Noem, ICE…”
She also described their tactics in Minneapolis as the “worst of the worst of humanity.”
Meanwhile, Billie Eilish has condemned high-profile figures in the entertainment industry for not using their platforms to criticise ICE, writing on Instagram Stories, “Hey my fellow celebrities, you gonna speak up? Or”.
Hawke speaking out against the current regime comes days after he was nominated at the upcoming Oscars in the ‘Best Actor’ category for his performance in Blue Moon. At the ceremony on March 15th, he will compete against Timothée Chalamet, Michael B Jordan, Wagner Moura, and Leonardo DiCaprio.
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