Mark Ruffalo, Guy Pearce, Melissa Barrera and Ralph Fiennes Among 350+ Figures to Sign Letter About Killing of Palestinian Protagonist of Cannes-Bound Doc: ‘We Are Ashamed' of Industry ‘Passivity' (EXCLUSIVE)
A group of more than 350 international actors, directors and producers have signed a letter published on the first day of Cannes condemning the killing of Fatma Hassona, the Palestinian photojournalist and protagonist of the festival-bound documentary 'Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk,' in an Israeli airstrike.
The letter, signed by names such as Mark Ruffalo, Guy Pearce, Ralph Fiennes, Melissa Barrera, Yorgos Lanthimos, Javier Bardem, Hannah Einbinder, Pedro Almodóvar, David Cronenberg, Alfonso Cuarón, Mike Leigh, Alex Gibney, Viggo Mortensen, Cynthia Nixon and many more, also called out the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences' for its 'lack of support' for 'No Other Land' co-director Hamdan Ballal.
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Just three weeks after winning the Oscar for the documentary, Ballal was assaulted by settlers and kidnapped by the Israeli army. After being criticized for its silence over the incident, AMPAS eventually publicly apologized. 'We are ashamed of such passivity,' read the letter.
But the letter also urged cinema — which it said was a 'breeding ground for socially committed works' — to use its art form to 'draw lessons from history, to make films that are committed' and to be 'present to protect oppressed voices.'
It concluded: 'For Fatma, for all those who die in indifference. Cinema has a duty to carry their messages, to reflect our societies. Let's act before it's too late.'
See the full letter and list of signatories below:
Fatma Hassona was 25 years old.
She was a Palestinian freelance photojournalist. She was targeted by the Israeli army on 16 April 2025, the day after it was announced that Sepideh Farsi's film 'Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk,' in which she was the star, had been selected in the ACID section of the Cannes Film Festival.
She was about to get married.
Ten of her relatives, including her pregnant sister, were killed by the same Israeli strike.
Since the terrible massacres of 7 October 2023, no foreign journalist has been authorised to enter the Gaza Strip. The Israeli army is targeting civilians. More than 200 journalists have been deliberately killed. Writers, film-makers and artists are being brutally murdered.
At the end of March, Palestinian filmmaker Hamdan Ballal, who won an Oscar for his film 'No Other Land,' was brutally attacked by Israeli settlers and then kidnapped by the army, before being released under international pressure. The Oscar Academy's lack of support for Hamdan Ballal sparked outrage among its own members and it had to publicly apologize for its inaction.
We are ashamed of such passivity.
Why is it that cinema, a breeding ground for socially committed works, seems to be so indifferent to the horror of reality and the oppression suffered by our sisters and brothers?
As artists and cultural players, we cannot remain silent while genocide is taking place in Gaza and this unspeakable news is hitting our communities hard.
What is the point of our professions if not to draw lessons from history, to make films that are committed, if we are not present to protect oppressed voices?
Why this silence?
The far right, fascism, colonialism, anti-trans and anti-LGBTQIA+, sexist, racist, islamophobic and antisemitic movements are waging their battle on the battlefield of ideas, attacking publishing, cinema and universities, and that's why we have a duty to fight.
Let's refuse to let our art be an accomplice to the worst.
Let us rise up.
Let us name reality.
Let us collectively dare to look at it with the precision of our sensitive hearts, so that it can no longer be silenced and covered up.
Let us reject the propaganda that constantly colonizes our imaginations and makes us lose our sense of humanity.
For Fatma, for all those who die in indifference.
Cinema has a duty to carry their messages, to reflect our societies.
Let's act before it's too late.
The signatories are:
Khalid AbdallaNoée AbitaHany Abu-AssadRaphaëlle AgoguéIyad AlasttalCatia AlbertazziVlad AlexisTaraneh AlidoostiWaad Al-KateabYasmine Al MassriPedro AlmodóvarPedro AlonsoCristèle Alves MeiraSerdar AkarIndia AmarteifioGianni AmelioCarmine AmorosoElisa AmorusoRomain AndréRoberto AndòGeoff ArbourneFrancesca ArchibugiTiziana AristarcoSwann ArlaudOlivier AzamGökçe BahadirJeanne BalibarBalojiAvital BarakCarlos BardemJavier BardemMelissa BarreraBelma BaşDominique BaumardXavier BeauvoisSaïd Ben SaïdLeïla BekhtiLuca BellinoSuzy BembaAdila BendimeradKaouther Ben HaniaDali BenssalahFabrizio BentivoglioJulie BertuccelliSimone BittonKonstantin BojanovBertrand BonelloAgathe BonitzerAmélie BonninBruno BontzolakisLucie BorleteauSami BouajilaElodie BouchezBastien BouillonGuillaume BracRachida BrakniEvelyne BrochuSilvia BrunelliJean-Stéphane BronCeleste BrunnquellGianfranco CabidduEsmeralda CalabriaLaure CalamyMimmo CaloprestiMehmet Can MertoğluEric CantonaStefania CasiniAntonio Maria CastaldoMarco CastaldiSergio CastellittoBeniamino CatenaEbru Nuri CeylanNuri Bilge CeylanLolita ChammahMoïra Chappedelaine-VautierAmira ChebliNadim CheikhrouhaAntoine ChevrollierSimona ChioccaJulie ChristieHélier CisterneIsabel CoixetDaniele ColucciniMaddalena CrippaDavid CronenbergCosta-GavrasSaverio CostanzoPaolo CostellaPappi CorsicatoBrian CoxMarcia CrossAlfonso CuarónLiam CunninghamSinéad CusackFatima DaasCherien DabisBéatrice DalleCharles DanceCiro D'EmilioArkin Mercan DedeMary Ellen DavisSlimane DaziYann DedetMatthieu de LabordePierre DeladonchampsÉmilie DeleuzeAgnès de SacyVolfango De BiasiCiro De CaroMaura DelperoMaria De MedeirosGiuliana De SioMaria Teresa De VitoSylvain DesclousLukas DhontJuan Diego BottoAlice DiopJavad DjavaheryJulie DelpyXavier DolanDimitri DoréLaetitia DoschJoana Dos ReisMike Downey, OBE.Sara DriverLuana DucheminSophie DupuisPierre-Nicolas DurandVirginie EfiraHannah EinbinderSayyid El AlamiOuidad ElmaAmir El-MasryMareike EngelhardtVíctor EriceBenedikt ErlingssonAdèle ExarchopoulosRoberto FaenzaFrédéric FarrucciSepideh FarsiNina FaureElda FerriMargherita FerriIsabella FerrariLisa FestaRalph FiennesSophie FiennesMilena FioreMahdi FleifelMichele FornaseroMarine FrancenBlanche GardinLena GarrelCarmen GarciaJean-Raymond GarciaNicole GarciaPablo Garcia CangaMatteo GarroneAlessandro GassmannNadia GenetXavier GensPaolo GenoveseAurélia GeorgesRichard GereDenis GheerbrantAdriano GianniniAlex GibneyRaphaël GirardotJonathan GlazerJudith GodrècheBrice GravelleEmmanuel GrasZeno GratonMarco GrecoJosé Luis GuerínDiane GuerreroSamir GuesmiVincent GuilbertAlain GuiraudieGerman GutierrezNaomi Foner GyllenhaalGrimur HákonarsonRebecca HallArthur HarariMisan HarrimanLena HeadeyClotilde HesmeHafsia HerziTed HopeVanessa HopeSandra HullerFiorella InfascelliMohamed JabalyAnnemarie JacirAlma JodorowskyÓskar JónassonElisabeth JonniauxValdimar JóhannssonRachel Leah JonesÞorsteinn JónssonGladys JoujouRadu JudeIlker KaleliAsif KapadiaSemih KaplanoğluMathieu KassovitzAki KaurismäkiJacques KébadianErwan Kepoa FaléYannick KergoatSofian KhammesMichel KhleifiShaka KingHéléna KlotzNicolas KlotzWilma LabateAriane LabedMourad LaffittePhilippe LaïkYórgos LánthimosAlexis LangloisNadav LapidLuc Leclerc du SablonErwan Le DucRadouan LeflahiMike LeighBlandine LenoirPhilippe LespinasseMica LeviLuigi Lo CascioElisabetta LodoliFlorence Loiret-CailleStefano LorenziBoris LojkineFabiomassimo LozziDaniele LucchettiSilvia LuziFilippo MacelloniGuslagie MalandaDavid MambouchSimone ManettiAndrea ManniMiriam MargolyesNarimane MariVincent MarietteFélix MaritaudLaïla MarrakchiLucrecia MartelMario MartoneAlessandra MasiValerio MastandreaPatricia MazuySimon McBurneyMounia MeddourSylvestre MeinzerFernando MeirellesKleber Mendonça FilhoNina MenkesStéphane MercurioChristian Carmosino MereuFrédéric MermoudNina MeurisseValerio MieliEmmanuelle MilletDavide MinnellaAvi MograbiIndya MooreMercedes MoránLaura MoranteGérard MordillatViggo MortensenAnna MouglalisGabriele MuccinoPeter MullanMargherita MuroloLino MusellaArab NasserTarzan NasserDalia NaousNadine NaousRaphaël NealEnza NegroniSusanna NicchiarelliCynthia NixonBruno NuyttenAndrea OcchipintiMichela OcchipintiJoshua OppenheimerLuis OrtegaRuben ÖstlundDamien OunouriFerzan OzpetekRosa PalascianoHlynur PálmasonDaphné PatakiaPaul PascotRaffaele PasseriniGuy PearceElisabeth PercevalAntonin PeretjatkoNahuel Pérez BiscayartAurélia PetitRalitza PetrovaJust PhilippotGiuseppe PiccioniCaroline PoggiLaura PoitrasClaire Pommet (Pomme)Franssou PrenantFrédérique PressmannVimala PonsMarco Simon PuccioniKatell QuillévéréOlivier RabourdinMichèle Ray-GavrasAnnick RedolfiChristophe RéginJérémie RenierYannick RenierRémy RicordeauMichele RiondinoYannick RossetCecilia RothMark RuffaloRúnar RúnarssonIra SachsZaho de SagazanLudivine SagnierCéline SalletteClaudio SantamariaSusan SarandonStefano SardoStefania SandrelliAloïse SauvageGreta ScaranoAngela SchanelecPierre SchoellerNiels SchneiderVassili SchneiderAlessandro ScippaAmanda SealesTracey SeawardSarah SeenéGuillaume SenezLéonor SerrailleAlia ShawkatMélanie Simon-FranzaEyal SivanGiancarlo SoldiPaolo SorrentinoMassimo SpanoMorgan SpectorLaetitia SpigarelliItalo SpinelliJuliette SmadjaRobyn SlovoRoger StahlTeona Strugar MitevskaLaurent SylvestreGianluca Maria TavarelliNatacha ThiéryJean-Pierre ThornÁsdís ThoroddsenLéa TodorovMaria Sole TognazziMelita Toscan du PlantierClaire TouzardJustine TrietAlessandro TrigonaJasmine TrincaCarice van HoutenPamela VarelaGiuseppe VarlottaIndira VarmaAnjana VasanSophie VerbeeckGiovanni VeronesiPaolo VirzìCat VilliersJonathan VinelNicolas WadimoffHarriet WalterJames WilsonLambert WilsonAlex WinterBenedict WongJessica WoodworthArieh WorthalterMaud WylerMohanad YaqubiL. 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