Florence Pugh: “Empathy for the People of Palestine Shouldn’t Be Difficult”

According to CinemaDrame news agency, The ongoing genocide and famine in Gaza have prompted several celebrities—many of whom had remained silent on the Israel-Gaza war over the past 21 months—to voice their support for the Palestinian people. Among them is Florence Pugh, star of the upcoming film Thunderbolts.

The British actress shared a video on Instagram of former UNRWA spokesperson Chris Gunness and wrote: “If in the past you looked away out of shame, guilt, or embarrassment, I suggest you watch and listen to this video, and try to help create change in any way you can. What these people have endured is horrific. Empathy shouldn’t be this hard, and we shouldn’t be making so many excuses.”

Ariana Grande, who had previously expressed support for Palestine, posted another Instagram story this Sunday, stating: “People dying from starvation is a red line.”

Melissa Barrera, one of the first Hollywood figures to publicly support Palestine—who was subsequently removed from Scream 7 as a result—addressed celebrity silence on Instagram: “My question for everyone who hasn’t said a word about Gaza/Palestine in the past 21 months is… how do you do it? How do you ignore the screams, the wailing, the bombings, the bullets? How have you hardened your hearts? Did you know when this all began?”

Nicola Coughlan, star of Bridgerton, has raised over $400,000 in just two days for aid to Palestinians. She had previously raised $2 million for Palestinian relief efforts.

Last week, Game of Thrones star Liam Cunningham also criticized artists for their silence: “This level of cowardice is beyond my comprehension. I don’t understand how they say nothing, don’t protest, and can look at themselves in the mirror…”

Prior to Pugh, and even before Cunningham, artists such as Michael Caine, Joaquin Phoenix, Hans Zimmer, Lana Del Rey, Billie Eilish, Bob Vylan, Kneecap, Green Day, Bono, Andrew Garfield, Liam Cunningham, Susan Sarandon, Melissa Barrera, Guy Pearce, Maisie Williams, Javier Bardem, Jenna Ortega, Nicola Coughlan, Aimée Lou Wood, Rachel Zegler, Mark Ruffalo, Toni Collette, John Cusack, as well as filmmakers Jonathan Glazer and Pedro Almodóvar, had all expressed their support for Palestine.