The Oscar Awards red carpet serves as a showcase for movie stars and top designers from renowned fashion houses and as a platform for some celebrities to express their political views. Several attendees at the 96th Academy Awards on Sunday, the most prestigious event in cinema, showed their support for Palestine amid the ongoing conflict with Israel.
Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas O’Connell, nominated for the Best Original Song Oscar for the song “What I Was Made For?” from the movie Barbie, wore red ribbons to call for a ceasefire in the war between Hamas and Israel.
This gesture stood out, as many Hollywood stars during this award season have been hesitant to draw attention to the conflict, following controversies on social media.
“We call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza. We are calling for lasting peace and justice for the people of Palestine,” said actor and comedian of Egyptian descent Ramy Youssef to Variety magazine on the red carpet.
Additionally, members of the cast of Anatomy of a Fall, nominated for Best Foreign Language Film and Best Picture, among others, wore pins to express solidarity with the Palestinian people.
Solidarity of Celebrities With Palestine
Before the stars arrived on the red carpet, hundreds of protesters greeted them with chants of “shame on you,” criticizing the Academy for holding the gala amid the ongoing conflict. Boos, chants of “shame on you,” and signs calling to “end aid to Israel” or for “a free Palestine will free us all” were heard and seen at the entrance to the Dolby Theatre on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, as reported by international media.
This story was written in Spanish by Daniel Matute in Cultura Colectiva News.