Last week, Netflix announced that production on Stranger Things season 5 is finally underway. On Tuesday, actor Noah Schnapp addressed the backlash around his anti-Palestine comments.
Now, people say the apology was a publicity move.
In the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel, Schnapp, who is Jewish, faced criticism regarding a now-deleted Instagram post in which he claimed, “You either stand with Israel or you stand with terrorism.” He also faced backlash over a video of him promoting “Zionism Is Sexy” and “Hamas Is ISIS” stickers.
After the Stranger Things season 5 cast photo circulated last week, there were more calls to boycott the show, which does not have a release date yet.
In the new TikTok, on which comments are disabled, Schnapp said he was misunderstood.
“I feel like my thoughts and beliefs have been so far misconstrued from anything even close to what I believe,” he said.
He added that he wants “peace and safety and security for all innocent people affected by this conflict,” and that he’s “had many open discussions” with Palestinian people and “learned a lot.”
He concluded by saying he hopes that Israel and Palestine can “live harmoniously together” but did not touch on why that is not possible until Palestinians are free of Israeli occupation.
@noahschnapp ❤️
♬ original sound – Noah Schnapp
“Call for the end of the occupation and a ceasefire,” said singer Lauren Jauregui, “until then you are exactly who you’ve shown yourself to be so, own that.”
“‘Peace’ really is the word of the white liberal, because it’s so vague,” said @emopunkloser. “There’s no such thing as peace without first liberation.”
@setaminata He’s been living his best life, that man dont care. #noahschnapp #foryou #foryoupage ♬ original sound – Setaminata
Another Stranger Things actor, Brett Gelman, was included in the Jan. 8 cast photo. He has also faced backlash for his Zionist views but has not issued an apology or statement so far. Some people, however, thought a tweet from Monday evening might have been his version of one.
Eduardo Franco, who plays Argyle in the series, revealed he’s not returning for season 5 (and never got a call about it), which also upset fans.
