“It became impossible for me to even be on television,” the actress, who was dropped from her agency, said at a press conference in Barcelona.
Susan Sarandon is opening up about how her recent public comments on Gaza may have affected her standing in Hollywood. The Oscar-winning actress says the fallout has been significant — and deeply personal.
The Thelma & Louise actress spoke candidly about struggling to find work in the American film industry during a press conference in Barcelona on Friday ahead of the 40th Goya Awards.
“I was fired by my agency specifically for marching and speaking out about Gaza — for asking for a ceasefire — and it became impossible for me to even be on television,” Sarandon said. “I don’t know lately if it’s changed, [but] I couldn’t do any major film, anything connected with Hollywood
United Talent Agency dropped Sarandon as a client in November 2023 after she spoke at a pro-Palestine rally and drew controversy for suggesting that Jewish Americans are “getting a taste of what it is like to be Muslim in this country, so often subjected to violence.”
She later apologized for the statement, writing, “I deeply regret diminishing this reality and hurting people with this comment. It was my intent to show solidarity in the struggle against bigotry of all kinds, and I am sorry I failed to do so.”
Entertainment Weekly has reached out to UTA for comment.
At the press conference, Sarandon said that since 2023 she has been able to act only in Europe. “I found agents ultimately in England and in Italy, and I have worked there,” she said. “I just did a film in Italy, and I did a play at the Old Vic for a number of months.”
The Rocky Horror Picture Show actress added that she has faced challenges getting cast in those countries, too. “This Italian director that just hired me, he was told not to hire me,” she said. “So that’s still recently. He didn’t listen, but they had that conversation. So right now, I kind of specialize in tiny films with directors who have never directed and are independent films, and films that are in Europe or in Italy. So that’s the main reason I haven’t been working as much.”
Sarandon also applauded Spain and its government for raising objections to Israel’s actions in Gaza, noting how different the country’s attitude has been compared to that of the United States.
“In a place where you feel repression and censorship, to see Spain and to see the president and what he says, and the support that he’s giving about Gaza, and to have actors like Javier Bardem come forward with such a strong voice is so important to us in the United States,” she said. “When you turn on the TV and you see how strong Spain is and how clear that you are morally about these issues, it makes you feel less alone, and it makes you feel that there is hope because of you all. You just don’t hear that on television in the United States.”
Sarandon has appeared in a handful of films released by major American studios since being dropped by her agents, including Netflix’s The Six Triple Eight and Nonnas. However, those projects began production before November 2023.
