BEIRUT: Pro-Palestinian groups in Lebanon, Jordan and other Arab countries are urging audiences to boycott Spider-Man: Brand New Day over producer Avi Arad’s public support for Israel.
The campaign has turned the film’s regional release into a wider debate over political expression, consumer boycotts and what activists describe as cultural normalization.
The Campaign to Boycott Supporters of Israel in Lebanon called on moviegoers not to buy tickets for the Marvel film, arguing that spending money on a production involving people who have publicly supported Israel amounts to “cultural normalization.”
“Do we want to support a production involving individuals who have publicly expressed political support for Israel?” the group said in a social media statement before the film’s release.
The campaign urged audiences to avoid paid screenings and said its position was part of a wider opposition to normalizing Israel and its policies.
In Jordan, the Taharrak anti-normalization group issued a separate call for a boycott and urged cinema operators to remove the film from theater schedules.
Taharrak also called on the Jordanian Artists Syndicate and other relevant organizations to oppose the film’s screening. Activists and social media creators in other Arab countries have since promoted similar calls.
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The campaign centers on Arad’s political views and public statements rather than the film’s plot, actors or other members of its production team.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day, released internationally July 31, stars Tom Holland as Peter Parker and is directed by Destin Daniel Cretton. Arad is listed among its four producers, alongside Kevin Feige, Amy Pascal and Rachel O’Connor.
Arad, a former Marvel Studios chief who holds Israeli and U.S. citizenship, served in the Israeli military from 1965 to 1968 and was involved in the 1967 Six-Day War.
His political views came under renewed scrutiny in 2024 after he criticized then-U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer for describing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as an obstacle to peace and calling for new elections in Israel.
In a letter published by TheWrap, Arad wrote, “It’s not your war. It is not your country. And it is not you who is at risk,” arguing that Schumer had no right to intervene in Israel’s electoral process.
Arad also described himself as a proud former member of the Israeli military and rejected Schumer’s position on a ceasefire.
Boycott organizers point to those remarks as evidence of Arad’s support for Israel and argue that ticket purchases provide financial support to a production involving him.
The campaign has been amplified by activists and online content creators in other parts of the Arab world, adding the film to a wider debate over whether consumers should financially support entertainment productions linked to prominent supporters of Israel.
Campaigners say their objection is specifically tied to Arad’s public positions and his role as a producer, rather than to the Spider-Man franchise or the film’s broader cast and crew.
The campaign reflects wider efforts by pro-Palestinian activists to use consumer boycotts as a form of political pressure during the Gaza war.
Despite the boycott calls, Spider-Man: Brand New Day has continued to screen in Lebanon, and its commercial impact remains unclear.
A representative of the Grand Cinemas chain told Lebanese publication L’Orient Today shortly after the film’s release that demand remained high.
The contrasting reactions underscore the divide between boycott organizers seeking to pressure entertainment companies through consumer choices and audiences continuing to attend screenings.
For now, the campaign has added a political dimension to the film’s regional release, with activists continuing to urge moviegoers to consider the public positions of figures involved in major Hollywood productions.
