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Israeli actress Noa Cohen pushed back against celebrities “silencing artists” supporting the Jewish state, according to comments reported by The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday.
Cohen spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about her latest film “Our Loves,” a drama set during the deadly Oct. 7 terror attacks in 2023. The film, one of the first to dramatize the events, drew criticism for being told largely through Israeli citizens’ perspectives as Hollywood stars continue to speak out against Israel.
The 24-year-old actress, who knew many victims of the Hamas attacks, expressed dismay at celebrities’ actions, particularly their calls to boycott Israeli film institutions.
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Actress Noa Cohen spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about the Oct. 7 attacks and Hollywood boycotts against Israel. (Brianna Bryson/Getty Images)
“Silencing artists because of government policies closes conversation. And don’t we need to keep that open?” Cohen said.
In 2025, over 1,000 Hollywood stars, directors and other film workers, including Emma Stone and Mark Ruffalo, signed a pledge to boycott institutions such as festivals, cinemas, broadcasters and production companies that “are implicated in genocide and apartheid against the Palestinian people.”
Cohen denied films like “Our Loves” erased the Palestinian people and encouraged a more open mind.
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“I mean, you don’t have to agree with a government to hear the stories of its people,” Cohen said.
Hundreds of Hollywood stars signed a pledge in 2025 to boycott Israeli film institutions. (Abid Katib/Getty Images)
In the meantime, she told The Hollywood Reporter that she and several others are still grieving the losses of that day.
“You couldn’t really grieve until all the hostages were home,” Cohen said. “So really we’re not even at the end of the first year of grieving. And there will be many more years.”
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Cohen is perhaps best known for her portrayal as the Virgin Mary in Netflix’s “Mary” film which premiered in 2024. At the time, Cohen’s casting caused an uproar among anti-Israel critics for casting an Israeli woman in the role, insisting that the real Mary was “Palestinian.”
The film’s director, D.J. Caruso, previously defended the casting in a statement, saying, “It was important to us that Mary, along with most of our primary cast, be selected from Israel to ensure authenticity.”
Noa Cohen previously faced backlash for portraying the Virgin Mary in Netflix’s “Mary.” (Netflix)
In a comment to Fox News Digital, the Israeli-American Council (IAC) stood by Cohen’s comments and called out efforts to target Israeli institutions and citizens.
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“Artists have every right to express their views, including views we may strongly disagree with. But freedom of speech does not mean freedom to apply a double standard and engage in discrimination,” the IAC said. “There is a clear difference between criticizing Israel’s government policies and targeting Israeli artists because of their faith or national origin. Boycotting Israeli artists in the name of artistic freedom is disingenuous, wrong, and a clear act of antisemitism.”
Fox News’ Hanna Panreck contributed to this report.