Group in Lebanon Calls for Boycott of New ‘Thor’ Movie

A group in Lebanon is calling on people in the country to boycott the new Marvel movie “Thor: Love and Thunder” because one of its stars, Natalie Portman, is Israeli and because, though she has been critical of Israel, she has not denied the existence of the Jewish State. The Campaign to Boycott Supporters of Israel in Lebanon last week issued the call to boycott the movie that is part of the popular Marvel franchise, a couple of days ahead of its opening in some Lebanese theaters on July 8, the Israellycool website first reported in English. The campaign notes that Portman has been critical of Israel and its policies that she refused to travel to Israel to receive the Genesis Prize in the presence of then-Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu because she said she “must stand up against violence, corruption, inequality and the abuse of power.” The campaign adds, however, that “although Portman’s position is an expression of the escalation of hostility to Israeli policies even among some Israelis or who were born or raised in the Zionist entity, it is clear from her words that her problem is confined to some policies, not to the entity of ‘Israel’ itself, which Portman considers to have been established.” The global gross earnings of the film, in the US and in 47 markets worldwide, as of Sunday was $302 million.