Adam Brody, the Jewish star of the Netflix hit "Nobody Wants This," has directly and publicly addressed the war in Gaza for the first time, calling it "genocide."
"Put me down as thinking it’s a genocide. Put me down as wanting a free Palestine," Brody said in an interview with GQ.
The comments came in an interview focused on Brody's political activism ahead of the U.S. midterm elections. The actor, who has volunteered with the progressive organization Swing Left since 2018, said he spent last weekend going door to door in Temecula, California, speaking with voters in a competitive congressional district. Asked how the Israel-Hamas war factors into his political activism, he acknowledged that so far it largely has not.
"Truthfully, it hasn’t come up," said Brody, who plays Noah Roklov, the "hot rabbi" who has returned him to prominence on American television and made him a popular figure in the Jewish community. "I have spoken a lot about it privately. I haven’t spoken much about it publicly."
When the interviewer asked whether he wanted to do so now, Brody did not shy away.
"Put me down as thinking it’s a genocide. Put me down as wanting a free Palestine," he said. "It’s awful that it’s taken so much death and misery, but it does feel like it’s reaching a breaking point that it should have a while ago. I’m hopeful that another administration can really do some good and correct some of these policies that are helping that situation be as awful as it is."
From 'Nobody Wants This'
(Photo: Courtesy of Netflix)
The remarks are particularly notable given Brody's public identity and the role that has brought him back into the spotlight in recent years. Brody, a Jewish atheist, rose to fame in the early 2000s as Seth Cohen on the cult series "The O.C.," one of the era's most recognizable Jewish characters on American television.
He now stars opposite Kristen Bell in "Nobody Wants This" as a young rabbi devoted to his faith who falls in love with Joanne, a non-Jewish podcast host. Brody has previously said he had a bar mitzvah but knew relatively little about Judaism before the series. To prepare for the role, he read books, listened to podcasts, watched documentaries and attended a Shabbat service and dinner.
In a 2024 interview with Variety, Brody also spoke about the responsibility he felt as a Jewish actor portraying a rabbi.
"I hope Jewish people like it," he said at the time, adding that he wanted to "do them and us proud."
Israel has been largely absent from the series. Creator Erin Foster has previously said she deliberately chose not to address the geopolitical situation because she did not view the show as an appropriate platform for doing so. Against that backdrop, the star's direct political statement, less than a month before the third season premieres, takes on added significance.
Brody also explained in the new interview why his views on the issue have rarely been heard until now. He does not maintain active public social media accounts, has not joined campaigns involving the wearing of political pins and has not become known for signing prominent petitions related to the war.
He said that because he does not wear a pin, he has not invited questions on the subject, though he suggested perhaps he should. He added that he respects those who do speak out visibly, but said the vast majority of questions he receives are about the show.
Brody said he has never tried to avoid a political question when asked directly.
Adam Brody
(Photo: Allison Dinner/AP)
Brody joins a relatively small group of prominent Jewish actors who have publicly used the term "genocide" in reference to Gaza, including Wallace Shawn of "The Princess Bride" and "Hacks" star Hannah Einbinder, who was arrested Thursday during a protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to the United Nations.
After her release, Einbinder asked that attention not be focused on her arrest but instead on what she called "the devastating genocidal war Israel is waging against people of Palestine and Southern Lebanon." She called Netanyahu "the butcher of Gaza," accused Israel of settler attacks, home demolitions, bombing people as they slept, killing, looting and land theft, and criticized the U.S. administration for welcoming him.
"Genocide is the headline," she concluded. "And it is time for it to end."
Other Jewish figures in the entertainment industry, including Mandy Patinkin and Oscar-winning "The Zone of Interest" director Jonathan Glazer, have criticized Israel and the war but have not used that term.
Hannah Einbinder
(Photo: Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)
Brody's comments also stand out against the positions taken by sisters Erin and Sara Foster, the women behind "Nobody Wants This," who have publicly expressed support for Israel and Jewish communities throughout the war.
Erin, who converted to Judaism before marrying music executive Simon Tikhman, and Sara have previously said that since October 7, they have used their social media accounts to support Israel and the Jewish people.
"We're proud to stand behind the things we believe are important and right, and we're not influenced by public opinion or afraid to openly share our views," they said in a previous interview with ynet.
Erin also signed public letters opposing boycotts of Israeli cultural institutions and efforts to exclude Israel from the Eurovision Song Contest, while Sara criticized those who refrained from condemning Hamas after the October 7 massacre.