Gal Gadot says she “had to speak up” for Israel following October 7th
Snow White star Gal Gadot has discussed her decision to defend Israel in the wake of the Hamas attacks on October 7th, 2023, and the escalation of the conflict between Palestine.
The Israeli actor has spoken in defence of her native country on numerous occasions since October 7th amid the ongoing war with Palestine and has repeatedly called for the release of hostages.
Immediately after the Hamas attack, Gadot took to Instagram to share an image of the Star of David along with the caption, “I stand with Israel you should too. The world cannot sit on the fence when these horrific acts of terror are happening!”
In a further social media post in December 2023 on Instagram, Gadot, who also served in the Israeli Defence Forces between 2005 and 2007, called upon the United Nations to demand the release of every female hostage taken by Hamas and claimed “the world has failed the women of October 7th.”
Now, Gadot has clarified her stance and told Variety: “After October 7th, I don’t talk politics — because who cares about the celebrity talking about politics? I’m an artist. I want to entertain people. I want to bring hope and be a beacon of light whenever I say anything about the world.”
She continued: “But on October 7th, when people were abducted from their homes, from their beds, men, women, children, elderly, Holocaust survivors, were going through the horrors of what happened that day, I could not be silent. I was shocked by the amount of hate, by the amount of how much people think they know when they actually have no idea, and also by how the media is not fair many times. So I had to speak up.”
Gadot said that she’s “not a hater”, and explained how she’s a grandchild of a holocaust survivor who moved to Israel to start a new life “after his entire family was erased in Auschwitz”. The actor also stated that on the other side of her family, she’s “an indigenous person of Israel” who has lived in the country for eight generations.
The Wonder Woman star remarked that she is “all about humanity” which is the reason she chose to “advocate for the hostages”. Gadot added: “When your compass is clear, your conscience is clean. I know what I’m advocating for, and I know what I wish for the world.”
In the same interview, Gadot also expressed her desire to start taking on Hebrew roles that will allow her to act in her native language, saying, “To be able to play in my mother tongue would be an amazing experience.”
The actor will play the Evil Queen in the upcoming live-action remake of Snow White, which will arrive in cinemas on March 21st. Disney recently scaled back its promotion for the film, including banning red-carpet interviews with stars and holding its European premiere at a castle in Spain with only 100 people in attendance.
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