What Gal Gadot has said about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
The ‘Snow White’ actress has become outspoken in support of Israeli hostages since Oct. 7
Gal Gadot attends the premiere of Disney’s Snow White. Photo by Rodin Eckenroth
By Samuel Eli Shepherd March 24, 2025
Not even a prince could save Disney’s live-action remake of Snow White, which had a grim debut this weekend.
With a budget of $250 million, the film only recouped $43 million at the box office. On the film review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a dismal average rating of 43%.
Even before Snow White hit cinemas, the film’s production was poisoned with controversy. On the day of the first trailer’s release, Rachel Zegler, who stars as Snow White, posted “and always remember, free palestine” on her X account.
Zegler, who had incited outrage in the past for posts criticizing supporters of President Donald Trump, drew ire from a pro-Israel crowd online and reportedly caused a rift between her and her Israeli co-star, Gal Gadot.
and always remember, free palestine.
— rachel zegler (she/her/hers) (@rachelzegler) August 12, 2024
While most of the film’s off-screen drama has revolved around Zegler’s outspokenness on progressive politics, some online commentators have instead fixated on Gadot and her Israeli background. Activists online have threatened to boycott Gal Gadot’s films because she completed her two-year mandatory service in the Israel Defense Forces. Some online critics even compared her actions in the Israeli military to those of the evil queen she plays in the film.
But what has Gadot ever said about her time in the IDF, or about previous Israel-Hamas wars?
‘Good training for Hollywood’
Gadot was born in Petah Tikvah, a city in central Israel, and she was raised in a nearby city, Rosh Haayin. On her father’s side, her family has lived in the region for eight generations, including prior to Israel’s statehood. On her mother’s side, her grandfather is a Holocaust survivor. Her name was Hebraized from Greenstein to Gadot by her parents.
After some time spent modelling as a teenager, including winning Miss Israel in 2004, Gadot served in the IDF as a combat instructor as a part of the country’s compulsory military service, where she trained soldiers in fitness. She spoke of her service in the IDF highly.
“The army wasn’t that difficult for me,” she told Fashion Magazine in 2016. “The military gave me good training for Hollywood.”
“It was demanding because you give up your freedom for two years, but there is something special in giving back to your community,” she said in the same interview. “One day I hope we have peace in the Middle East and everyone is able to live together in harmony. I wish none of the countries in the world will ever need an army, but this is how it goes in Israel.”
‘Our neighbors deserve the same’
Unlike another vocal Israeli actress in Hollywood, Gadot has rarely spoken out against the Israeli government, except for a few key instances.
In 2018, after Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu stated that “Israel was not a country of all its citizens” when referencing the controversial nation-state law, Gadot posted her thoughts on Instagram in support of Israel’s 20% Arab minority.
“Love thy neighbor,” Gadot wrote in the post, which has since been deleted. “It is not a matter of right or left, Arabs or Jews, secular or religious,” she said. “It is a matter of dialogue, of dialogue for peace, and of our tolerance for each other. It is our responsibility to shine hope and light for a better future for our children.”
During the 2021 Israel-Hamas war, Gadot posted a statement on X, expressing sadness for both sides of the conflict.
— Gal Gadot (@GalGadot) May 12, 2021
“My heart breaks,” Gadot posted on May 12, 2021. “I worry for my family, my friends. I worry for my people. This is a vicious cycle that has been going on for far too long. Israel deserves to live as a free and safe nation. Our neighbors deserve the same. I pray for the victims and their families, I pray for this unimaginable hostility to end, I pray for our leaders to find the solution so we could live side by side in peace. I pray for better days.”
The comment drew outrage from pro-Palestinian activists on X, who noted that Gadot referred to Palestinians as “our neighbors” rather than by name. Gadot has since disabled replies to the post, but she has not deleted it.
‘I had to advocate for the hostages’
On the day of the Hamas-led Oct. 7 attacks, Gadot posted an image of a Star of David on her Instagram account with the caption, “I stand with Israel you should too. The world cannot sit on the fence when these horrific acts of terror are happening!”
On Oct. 12, as Israel’s incursion into Gaza ramped up, Gadot posted an Instagram story stating, “Killing innocent Palestinians is horrific. Killing of innocent Israelis is horrific. If you don’t feel the same, I think you should ask yourself why that is.”
The post prompted backlash from Israelis who viewed it as slanderous against Israel. Popular Israeli radio host Ofira Hasayag told Gadot to “sit down and stay quiet.” Gadot shortly thereafter deleted the story on Instagram and issued an apology.
“All I want is to speak out for Israel in the world and to show the horrors that we are experiencing and to help obtain worldwide support in the face of our critics,” Gadot said.
Gadot has since become more vocal in support of Israeli hostages held captive in Gaza. On her Instagram account, she posted the names of more than 80 Israeli hostages in individual Instagram stories saved as a highlight reel. On her X account, she posted several videos of hostages prior to the war with the hashtags #BringThemBack and #ReleaseTheHostages. She hosted a film screening of the IDF-produced film Bearing Witness to the October 7th Massacre. She also recently attended the Nova Exhibition in Los Angeles.
“I felt like I had to advocate for the hostages,” Gadot told Variety earlier this month. “I know what I’m advocating for, and I know what I wish for the world. I am praying for better days for all. I want everybody to have good life and prosperity, and the ability to raise their children in a safe environment.” She did not mention Palestinians nor the humanitarian crisis in Gaza in the interview.
At an Anti-Defamation League conference titled “Never Again is Now” earlier this month, Gadot spoke again about rising global antisemitism and finding solace in her faith in a speech.
“None of us can ignore the explosion of Jew-hatred around the world anymore,” Gadot said. “My name is Gal, and I’m Jewish, and we have had enough of Jew-hatred.”
As in her Instagram posts, Gadot specifically mentioned what she viewed as a lack of support from the international community for Jewish Israeli women.
“On Oct. 7, Jewish women were sexually terrorized, raped, murdered and kidnapped by Hamas,” Gadot said. “We were all listening, hoping to hear support from our sisters across the world, and too often heard silence,” said Gadot, who has long publicly identified as a feminist.
Two weeks after her speech at the ADL, Gadot delivered another speech at the unveiling ceremony for her Hollywood Walk of Fame star. She did not mention antisemitism or the war in her speech, but she spoke of her Israeli identity.
“I’m just a girl from a small town in Israel, and I could never imagine such a moment,” she told the crowd.
Prior to the speech, Gadot’s ceremony was interrupted by dueling pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel protesters.
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