Susan Sarandon says her politics got films 'taken away'
Susan Sarandon says her politics have cost her film roles — and, if you’re wondering why, she points to Hollywood pressure.
At a press conference on Sept. 6 at the Venice Film Festival, Susan Sarandon said that speaking out about Palestine has come with real professional fallout. Promoting The Echo Chamber, the Oscar winner described a split between what she sees as a shifting public conversation and what she calls a slower-moving Hollywood gatekeeping class — alleging that “films have been” “taken away” and that agencies have advised people not to hire her.
Sarandon pointed to a growing willingness outside the U.S. industry to engage her, even as she characterized the big-studio landscape as “particularly difficult territory.” She said she’s felt more welcome internationally, but claimed that in Hollywood, the power centers haven’t fully caught up with that change.
Sarandon says agencies have told people not to hire her.
Backstory
Her comments follow a rocky stretch that began after she addressed a pro-Palestinian rally in New York in 2023, after which her longtime agency UTA dropped her. She later apologized, calling part of what she said “a mistake in phrasing.”
The Echo Chamber
Directed by Andrea Pallaoro, The Echo Chamber centers on the complicated relationship between two characters, Anne and Leonardo. Sarandon plays Ava May, an established artist whose life experience — and musical presence — adds a different emotional register to the story and forges an unexpected connection with Leonardo.
The movie unfolds largely in a single location, with detailed production design and carefully composed cinematography under Pallaoro’s restrained approach. Onstage in Venice, Sarandon credited Pallaoro with casting her despite what she described as warnings against working with her.