Jonathan Glazer Hit by 500 Jewish Signatories of Letter Against Oscar Speech

Summary

• Filmmaker Jonathan Glazer’s speech at the Oscars sparked controversy, and now more than 500 Jewish filmmakers, artists, and producers in Hollywood have written a letter denouncing him.
• Famous signatories, including Eli Roth and Jennifer Jason Leigh, denounce Glazer for equating Nazism with Israeli actions.
• Glazer’s film,
  The Zone of Interest
  , won the Oscars for Best International Film and Best Sound and is considered a masterpiece. His speech called for peace and criticized the dehumanization of any group.

It’s been eight days since MovieWeb was at the 96th Academy Awards, and there are still thunderous rumbles in Hollywood over the Best International Film acceptance speech given by Jonathan Glazer for The Zone of Interest. While the speech (which was misleadingly misquoted by Variety and other outlets) may seem harmless to many people, decrying any act of dehumanization and murder, be they committed by Nazi or Hamas, Israeli or Houthi, American or Iranian. It touched a particular nerve for its analogies, however, and now more than 500 Jewish artists and professionals in the film industry have signed a letter denouncing the speech.

The letter includes signatures from famous creatives in the industry, such as Eli Roth (Hostel, Thanksgiving), Jennifer Jason Leigh (The Hateful Eight, Single White Female, Annihilation), Amy Sherman-Palladino (Gilmore Girls, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Odeya Rush (Goosebumps, Lady Bird, Umma), Tara Strong (Teen Titans, The Powerpuff Girls), Jeremy Garelick (Murder Mystery 2), and several of the most vocal voices in support of Israel recently — Brett Gelman (Stranger Things, Fleabag), Debra Messing (Will & Grace), and Julianna Margulies (ER, The Good Wife).

What this means for Glazer and his film (and Oscar) remains unclear, but there is undoubtedly a growing number of angry voices in the film community who want something to be done about Glazer. His film, The Zone of Interest, was one of the most disturbing and affecting of the year, a study of not just ‘the banality of evil’ but the easiness of it. Following the first commandant of Auschwitz and his family who live next to the concentration camp, the film follows the happy, average family as they go about their lives, the smoke of burning bodies and screams of dying Jews just off in the peripheral distance.

Related Complete 2024 Oscar Winners List: Oppenheimer Sweeps 96th Academy Awards The complete list of the Oscar nominees and who won at the 96th Academy Awards on March 10, 2024.

Jonathan Glazer’s Controversial Speech

Will Sayre
MovieWeb

It’s rare that a film about the horrors of the Holocaust generates such controversy among the Jewish community. Here is the full acceptance speech from Glazer (whose other films include Sexy Beast, Under the Skin, and Birth) from March 10th at the 96th Academy Awards, for you to decide:

Thank you to the Academy for this honor and to our partners A24 Films for access and Polish Film Institute, to the Stead Museum for their trust and guidance, to my producers, actors, collaborators.

All our choices were made to reflect and confront us in the present, not to say look what they did then, but rather look what we do now. Our film shows where dehumanization leads at its worst. It’s shaped all of our past and present. Right now, we stand here as men who refute their Jewishness and the Holocaust being hijacked by an occupation which has led to conflict for so many innocent people.

Whether the victims of October — whether the victims of October the 7th in Israel or the ongoing attack on Gaza, all the victims of this dehumanization, how do we resist? Alexandria, the girl who glows in the film as she did in life, chose to. I dedicate this to her memory and her resistance. Thank you.

The Letter Against Glazer

The Zone of Interest

4.5/5

Release Date February 2, 2024

Director Jonathan Glazer

Cast Sandra Hüller , Christian Friedel , Freya Kreutzkam , Max Beck

Runtime 1hr 45min

Writers Martin Amis , Jonathan Glazer

Studio A24, Access Entertainment, Film4

With that context in mind, here is the full letter and signatories in protest of Glazer:

We are Jewish creatives, executives and Hollywood professionals. We refute our Jewishness being hijacked for the purpose of drawing a moral equivalence between a Nazi regime that sought to exterminate a race of people, and an Israeli nation that seeks to avert its own extermination.

Every civilian death in Gaza is tragic. Israel is not targeting civilians. It is targeting Hamas. The moment Hamas releases the hostages and surrenders, is the moment this heartbreaking war ends. This has been true since the Hamas attacks of October 7th. The use of words like “occupation” to describe an indigenous Jewish people defending a homeland that dates back thousands of years, and has been recognized as a state by the United Nations, distorts history.

It gives credence to the modern blood libel that fuels a growing anti-Jewish hatred around the world, in the United States, and in Hollywood. The current climate of growing antisemitism only underscores the need for the Jewish State of Israel, a place which will always take us in, as no state did during the Holocaust depicted in Mr. Glazer’s film.

The Zone of Interest has returned to some theaters after the Oscars, and is now available to rent or buy on digital platforms such as Google Play, YouTube, Apple TV, and Prime Video through the link below. You can also see the full list of signatories in the letter against Glazer below.

Watch The Zone of Interest

Signatories:

A.M. Driver SAG

Aaron Erol Ozlevi Director

Aaron Fishman DGA Producer / Director

Adam Berkowitz None Manager/Producer/Strategic Advisor

Adam Friedman Creative Artists Agency

Adam Goldworm Manager/Producer

Adam Kulbersh

Adam Newman

Adam Rosenberg

Adam Waltuch TelevisaUnivision

Alan R. Cohen WGA

Alex Anhalt Sugar23

Alex Foster

Alex Horn Author and Editor

Alex Lebovici Producer

Alex Litvak WGA Writer

Alex Meitner

Alida Michql AEA

Alissa Vradenburg

Aliza J. Sokolow

Allan Spielman MEMBER OF RETRO69, WOODTSOCK TRIBUTE MUSICIAN AND COMPOTER DEVELOPER

Allison Lahav

Ally Shuster Agent

Alon Aranya

Alyssa Hill WGA Screenwriter

Amanda Markowitz SAG/AFTRA, PGA

Amy Engelberg WGA

Amy Pascal Producer

Amy Sherman-Palladino WGA / DGA Writer/director/producer

Amy Straus WGA Writer

Andrea Barros Retired

Andrea Cayton

Andrew Avner

Andrew Stearn PGA Producer

Anna April-Ross

Annie Wood WGA/SAG/AFTRA Actor/Writer/Artist

Ari Ackerman

Ari Arad

Ari Frenkel SAG Actor / Filmmaker

Ariel Nishli

Ariel Vromen DGA FilmMaker

Ariella Blejer WGA

Ariella Noveck

Ariyela Wald-Cohain CDG 892 COSTUME DESIGNER

Art Levitt Self

Asher Weinberger

Avi Liberman SAG/Aftra

Avital Levy

Avital Onn Shachar Business Affairs

Aviva Pressman AEA, SAG

Avram Butch Kaplan DGA Jamsea Productions, Inc

Barbara Garshman WGAE Garshman Productions LLV

Barbara Heller SAG Actor writer producer

Barbara Lazaroff ASID Commercial designer, restaurateur, businesswoman

Barbie Kligman WGA

Barry Schkolnick WGA Writer/Producer/Creator

Bart Coleman

Batia Parnass SAG AFTRA

Becky Tahel PGA, SAG-E Producer, Writer, Actress

Ben Cosgrove CEO, Leviathan Productions

Ben Levin LINK Entertainment

Ben Mor DGA Director

Ben Younger WGA/DGA

Benjamin Gober

Benjamin Rapoport

Bess Kargman DGA Director

Beth Milstein WGAW Writer

Betsy Borns WGAW Writer/Producer

Bill Freiberger WGA Writer

Bob Bookman

Bob Kushell WGA

Bonnie Greenberg Music supervisor/producer/professor

Bradley J. Fischer Producers Guild of America Producer

Brett Gelman Actor and Writer

Brett Gursky Writer / Director / Producer

Brian Frazer

Brian Liebman

Bruce Burger Music Producer and Recording Artist, RebbeSoul

Bruce Franklin DGA Producer

Bruce Goldstein The Cat in Manhattan

Bruce Resnikoff

Caitlin Gold Producer

Cameron Curtis

Carin Sage EVP, Feature Film, Skydance Productions

Carl Schwaber SAG-AFTRA

Carmi Zlotnik

Carolyn Newman

Caryn Osofsky SAG SAG actress and director

Chava Floryn Filmmaker/Actress Twin Rose Media

Chuck Slavin SAG-AFTRA Actor

Cindy Kaplan

Claudine Jakubowicz Film Producer

Clifford J. Green WGAW Screenwriter

Cory Richman Manager / Liebman Entertainment

Craig Emanuel Entertainment Executive

Craig Singer p.g.a. Producer

D.J. Gugenheim PGA

D.M. Harring WGA

Dan Adler Producer

Dan Benz wga writer

Dan Birnbaum

Dan Kaufman VFX Supervisor/VFX Producer

Dan Marshall SAG-AFTRA

Dan Redfeld AFM Local 47 Composer

Dan Signer WGA

Dana Min Goodman

Dani Menkin

Daniel Alcheh SCL

Daniel Grindlinger WGA Writer

Daniel Kaufman DGA Director

Daniel Lehrer WGA Writer

Daniel Rosenberg WGAe

Daniella Rabbani SAG AFTRA AEA Actor

Danielle Pretsfelder Demchick CSA Casting Director

Danna Rosenthal

Danny Manus Writer, Script Consultant

Danny Weiss WGA

Dave Chameides Local 600 and DGA Camera Operator

David Abrookin

David Bickel WGA Writer/Producer

David Brandes WGA writer

David Fury WGA/DGA/SAG-AFTRA Round Swamp Entertainment

David Grae WGA

David Haring

David Kekst

David Kendall WGA/DGA

David Kohan WGA Writer-Producer

David Lipper SAG Actor, writer, director, producer

David N. Weiss WGA Writer-Director

David Price TV Academy Executive Producer

David Renzer Creative Community for Peace

David S. Rosenthal WGA

David Shore WGAW DGA

David Zabel WGA

Debi Pomerantz

Deborah Marcus

Debra Messing SAG/AFTRA Actor/Producer

Deena Stern Entertainment Marketing Executive

Dena Roth Ampas Set decorator

Dena Waxman Executive Producer / Writer

Diane Robin Sag

Diego Chojkier

Doug Mankoff Producer

Eitan Chitayat Creative Director

Eli Roth Director/Screenwriter

Eli Steele Producer

Elin Hampton WGA/SAG-AFTRA Round Swamp Entertainment

Ellie Kadosh Actress

Elon Gold WGA SAG/AFTRA Comedian/Actor/Writer

Elyssa Nicole Trust

Emmanuelle Chriqui Sag Actor

Erez Rosenberg Attorney / Partner at Jackoway Austen et al

Eric Feig Entertainment Attorney

Eric Fineman

Eric Tuchman WGA writer-producer

Estelle Lasher

Esther Netter

Evan Silver DGA Director / Writer

Fernando Szew

Franklyn Gottbetter DGA Producer

Fred Raskin ACE Film Editor

Frederic Richter

Gabriela Tscherniak DGA Director

Gail Berman PGA Producer

Gail Goldberg CSA Casting Director

Gail Katz PGA Producer

Gary Barber Spyglass Media Group

Gary Gilbert Gilbert Films

Geoff Silverman Producers the Cartel Literary Management

Geoffrey Cantor SAG-AFTRA Actor

George Gallagher SAG-AFTRA

Gil Goldschein

Ginette Rhodes SAG AFTRA AEA

Golan Ramraz writer/producer

Gregg Simon DGA Director

Guri Weinberg SAG/AFTRA Actor

Hank Steinberg WGA / DGA Writer / Director / Producer

Hannah Louise Shearer WGAw Writer

Hannah Tuber

Hawk Koch PGA, DGA, AMPAS Producer

Heshy Rosenwasser Musician and songwriter / The Hesh Inc.

Hope Levy Sag Aftra Actress

Howard Michael Gould Writer

Howard Reichman Producer/director

Howard Rosenman SAGAFTRA MOVIE & TV PRODUCER

Iddo Goldberg SAG Actor

Ilana Wernick WGA Writer-Producer

Inbal B. Lessner ACE Executive Producer/Editor

Inon Shampanier WGA

Ivan Menchell Writers Guild Writer/Producer

Jacey Stamler 705 Wardrobe Supervisor

Jack Plotnick SAG/AFTRA Actor

Jacob Fenton UTA Agent

Jaime Becker

Jaime Eliezer Karas DGA

James Beaman SAG/AFTRA Actor/Writer

Jamie Bialkower

Jamie Denbo WGA, SAG-AFTRA CO-EP Grey’s Anatomy

Jamie Elman SAG, WGA YidLife Crisis

Jan Oxenberg WGA

Jared Sleisenger

Jarred Weisfeld Publishing

Jason A. Kessler WGA Screenwriter

Jason Newman Manager / Untitled Entertainment

Jason Venokur WGA

Jay Kogen wga, dga, sag-aftra WRITER/Producer/Director

Jay Shore

Jeff Astrof WGA Writer/Showrunner

Jeff Fierson PGA Producer

Jeff Greenberg Gersh

Jeff Handel

Jeff Rake WGA Writer/Showrunner

Jeffrey Braer Former SAG/AFTRA Independent Writer/Producer & Theme Park Developer

Jenn Levine Writer / Producer

Jennifer Jason leigh

Jennifer Maisel WGA Playwright/Screenwriter

Jennifer Shakeshaft SAG Self

Jennifer Smith GMS (Guild Of Music Supervisors) Music Supervisor

Jeremy Aluma SDC Theatre Director & Producer

Jeremy Drysdale WGA Screenwriter

Jeremy Elice Writer

Jeremy Garelick dga / wga

Jeremy Garelick WGA/DGA

Jeremy Goldscheider Producer

Jeremy Lehrer-Graiwer WGA Writer

Jeremy Padow Screenwriter

Jerry Weil SAG-AFTRA Actor

Jessica Leventhal WGA

Jessica Switch PGA Producer

Jill Kargman WGA/SAG

JJ Adler Dga Director

Jo LaMond WGA Self

Joanie Leeds Recording Academy

Jodi Fleisher SAG/Aftra Actor

Jodi Lieberman Talent Manager

Joe Pearlman

Joe Weisberg

Joel Fields WGA

Joel H. Cohen WGA

Joel Michaely

Joelle Boucai WGA

Joey Jupiter-Levin SAG/Aftra Fi-Core Actress

John Altman

John Fogelman

Jon Polk

Jon Weinbach President, Skydance Sports

Jonah Platt WGA, SAG

Jonathan Baruch

Jonathan Herman WGA

Jonathan Jakubowicz Wga Writer & Director

Jonathan Prince WGA, DGA, SAG

Jonathan Rosen

Jonny Caplan WGA Impossible Media

Jonny Umansky WGA Screenwriter

Jordan Roberts SAG-AFTRA Actor & Producer, Content Creator

Josh Schaer WGA TV writer / producer

Josh Silver Personal manager

Joshua Katz WGA

Josie Davis SAG/AFTRA

Judie Aronson SAG-AFTRA

Judy Gols Sag/Aftra, WGA, Actors Equity

Julianna Margulies SAG-AFTRA Actor

Julie D. Holman WIFT Independent film, Director, writer, and producer

Justin Arnold SAG-AFTRA Actor

Kadia Saraf SAG and WGA-E Actor and Writer

Karen Morse WGA Screenwriter

Kate Cohen DGA, PGA Producer/Director

Keetgi Kogan Steinberg WGA Writer/Producer/Showrunner

Keith Eisner WGA Showrunner

Ken Hertz Hertz Lichtenstein Young & Polk

Keren Hantman 1st AD

Kevin Asch

Kevin Bright DGA Producer/Director

Kimberly Ehrlich CSA Associate Casting Director

Kimberly Wallis SAG/AFTRA Actor

Kory Lunsford Producer

Lana Melman Authors Guild Writer

Lanie Siegel

Laurie Israel WGA, TAG

Laurie Seidman Producers Guild Producer

Lawrence Bender Producer

Lea Porter The Beverly Hills Estates

Leah Gottfried

Lee Broda SAG AND PGA Producer and actress

Lee Trink

Lee Weinberg Weinberg Gonser LLP

Leo Pearlman

Leonard Dick

Leslie Belzberg AMPAS, PGA Self Employed

Leslie Schapira WGA Writer/Producer

Lev L. Spiro DGA Director

Limor Gott Producer

Linda Burstyn WGA

Lior Rosner ASCAP Rosner Music Inc.

Liron Artzi

Lisa Edelstein SAG/AFTRA, DGA, WGA Actor, director, writer

Lisa Feldsher

Lisa Ullmann Producer and Social Impact

Loni Steele Sosthand WGA Writer, Producer

Lori Alan SAG-AFTRA Actress/producer/writer

Lorin Green

Loris Kramer Lunsford Producer

Lynn Harris PGA:AMPAS Producer

Lynn Roth WGA, DGA Writer/Director/Producer

M.J. Kang WGA, SAG-AFTRA Writer, Actor

Mandana Dayani

Mandy Mitchell Wardrobe Stylist

Marc Guggenheim WGA, DGA, PGA, Animation Guild Writer/Producer

Marci Liroff AMPAS Intimacy Coordination

Marcus J Freed SAG-e

Margrit Polak Talent Manager

Mark Feuerstein SAG, DGA, WGA Actor

Mark Moskowitz Producer

Mark Pellegrino SAG Actor

Mark Reisman WGA

Mark Schiff

Marni Flans

Marty Adelstein PGA Tomorrow Studios

Matt Ritter SAG Screenwriter/Producer/Actor

Matthew Hiltzik

Matthew Salsberg wga writer producer

Matti Leshem WGA Writer, Producer

Max Jacoby

Maya Lasry

Melissa Byer WGA

Melissa Center Actor, Filmmaker

Melissa Greenspan Sag-aftra

Melissa Rosenberg WGA Showrunner

Melissa Zukerman

Menachem Silverstein Comedian

Micha Liberman 700 editors guild Owner Mind Meld Arts

Michael Auerbach

Michael B. Kaplan WGA

Michael Berns WGA Writer/Producer

Michael Borkow WGA

Michael Diamond Talent Manager / MGMT Entertainment

Michael Glouberman

Michael Konyves

Michael Lewis Agent

Michael Malone

Michael Pelmont Manager

Michael Rapaport Actor/Disruptor

Michael Robertson Moore

Michael Sobel

Michal Schick

Micky Levy WGA Writer/Director

Mikhail Nayfeld Heroes and Villains Entertainment

Mimi Steinberg Writer/producer

Miranda Bailey Sag – pga – academy member Cold iron pictures

Mitchell Akselrad WGA

Montana Tucker

Moran Atias SAG Actress producer

Name Guild Affiliation (optional) Occupation / Employer (optional)

Nancy Cohen WGA Writer/Producer

Nancy Spielberg Producer

Natalie Marciano President/ Producer

Natalie Shampanier WGA

Nathan Firer

Neil A. Cohen

Nick Greene SAG

Nicole Rocklin Producer

Noa Tishby SAG Author

Noam Ash Writer, actor

Odeya Rush

Omri Lahav

Ophira Dagan Producer

Oren Safdie WGA ST. OLAF COLLEGE

Ori Elon Shtisel Screenwriter

Pam Reynolds AMPAS / Executive branch Amazon MGM Studios

Pamela Davis WGA

Patrick Moss WGA

Paul A Mendelson WGGB Screenwriter and author

Paul Weitzman Literary Agent

Peter Lenkov WGA

Phyllis Strong WGA

Po Kutchins Showrunner

Rabbi David Wolpe Sinai Temple/ Harvard U

Rabbi Marvin Hier

Rabbi Steve Leser Wilshire Boulevard Temple

Rabbi Yonah Bookstein

Rachel Kamerman Art Directors Guild local #800

Rachel Kaplan PGA

Rachel Seymour

Rahman Daneshgar Retired

Rakefet Abergel SAG AFTRA

Rami Rivera Frankl DGA

Raphael Margules

Raymond Leon Roker Creator

Rebecca Mall CMO

Rebecca Thomas Agent

Rena Strober Sag-Aftra Actor

Rhonda Price

Rina Mimoun WGA

Rinat Arinos

Rob Kutner WGA Writer-Producer

Rob Lee PGA

Robert Kaplan

Robert Lantos PGA Producer

Robert Rovner WGA Writer/Producer

Robin Carus CSA Casting Director

Robin Lippin Local 399 and CSA casting director

Robyn Bluestone

Rochel Saks Manager

Rod Lurie DGA, WGA

Roger Kumble WGA

Ron Rappaport WGA

Ron West Thruline Entertainment

Rona Geller

Ross Greenberg

Ross Novie DGA Director / 1st AD

Rosser Goodman PGA Circle Content

Rotem Alima Executive Producer

Ryan Guiterman Writer-Director

Salvador Litvak

Sam Feuer SAG/AFTRA Actor/Producer

Sam Sandak WGA Writer / Producer

Sam Wasserman Producers Guild, Academy of Television Producer

Samantha Ettus Founder, 2024 New Voices

Sami Kolko SAG AFTRA Actor / Producer

Sammy Horowitz WGA Writer

Samuel Franco WGA

Sarah Afkami WGA Writer

Sari Sanchez SAG-AFTRA Actor/ Writer

Saul Blinkoff

Scott Kaufman

Scott Levine DGA Producer

Scott Melrose Talent Agent

Scott Mitchell Rosenberg CEO, Platinum Studios Inc.

Scott Rosenbaum

Scott Rosenfelt WGA, DGA Writer/Producer/Director

Sepideh Makabi Director

Seth Fisher

Seth Kurland WGA Writer/Producer

Seth Rudetsky Sag/Aftra, WGA East Actor, radio host, writer, musician

Shaked Berenson pga

Shani Atias SAG AFTRA Actress

Shanni Suissa CEO, Jews Talk Justice

Sharon Bialy CSA, Academy of Motion Pictures Member Casting Director

Sharon Farber Film composer

Sharon Lieblein CSA, teamsters local 399 Casting Director

Sharona Beck

Shauna Perlman Agent

Sheer Aviram Actress / Writer / Director

Shep Rosenman Attorney

Sherry Lansing Producer

Shie Rozow Motion Picture Editors Guild Composer, Music Editor

Shir Samari

Shira Rosenfeld Creative producer

Shira Yoram Producer

Simcha Jacobovici Filmmaker

Sophie Kargman DGA Director

Spencer Berman Producer

Stacey Tenenbaum CSA

Stacy Sarner The Walt Disney Company

Stella Evans Self

Stephanie Liss WGAW, DRAMATISTS GUILD Writer

Stephen Levinson WGA-E

Sternberg Harriet Harriet Sternberg Management, Inc.

Steven E Gordon 839 and 800 Director Wild Canary

Steven Marmalstein WGA

Stuart Acher Director/Writer

Sue Steinberg

Susan Rovner

Susan Rudick SAG-AFTRA Actor

Tamar Pelzig

Tamar Simon BAFTA Film Distributor and Publicist

Tamara Becher-Wilkinson WGA

Tara Strong SAG/ACTRA Actress

Terry Serpico SAG AFTRA, WGAE Actor, Writer,Director

Tiffany Haimof Wasserman / Senior Director, Business Affairs

Tiffany Lo WGA

Tovah Feldshuh SAG-AFTRA-EQUITY ACTOR

Traci Szymanski

Tracy-Ann Oberman Actor

Victoria Gordon

Vincent LeGrow

Wendy Engelberg WGA

Wendy Sachs WGA Director/Producer

Yael Swerdlow Video Game Industry CEO/Founder Maestro Games SPC

Yahm Steinberg Actor

Yuri Rutman SAG

Yuval David SAGAFTRA, AEA Actor, Director, Journalist

Ziba Terrio

Zusha Goldin Celebrity Photographer

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