Spanish film star Javier Bardem: The narrative about Gaza and Palestine is changing

(Patria) - Spanish star Javier Bardem told AFP that he is "getting more work than ever" despite his public campaign against the Israeli war in Gaza, which he attributed to a "change in narrative" surrounding the conflict.

At the last Oscars ceremony in February, the star of "No Country for Old Men" used his time presenting the award for Best International Film to declare: "No to war and a free Palestine."

Acclaimed actress Susan Sarandon, a fellow pro-Palestinian activist, as well as other lesser-known personalities, have complained that their work has dried up after their statements condemning Israeli actions in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.

"I think it's important to be able to express your point of view, knowing that there will be people who agree and people who disagree," Bardem told AFP at the Cannes Film Festival where he stars in "The Beloved" by Spanish director Rodrigo Sorogoyen.

Claims of 'blacklisting'

Scottish screenwriter Paul Laverty, a member of the Cannes jury this year, accused Hollywood of blacklisting film personalities like Sarandon, Bardem, and Mark Ruffalo for their political views.

"I'm not worried about it because I'm lucky enough to be able to work. I'm lucky to be in a position where I can express myself knowing I have job offers. I imagine there are people who are more afraid of not being called because of it, but that's not my case," said the fifty-seven-year-old Bardem.

"In fact, it's the opposite, they call even more because the narrative is changing," said the Oscar winner.

"It's no longer so much under the control of those who have always controlled it. Instead, we now understand that there are consequences when you support or justify a genocide like the one happening. And society knows that," he said.

In the film "The Beloved," Bardem plays a renowned film director who returns to Spain after years spent in the United States to make a film with his estranged actress daughter (Victoria Luengo).

The film, which premiered on Saturday, deals with the former Spanish colonial occupation of Western Sahara, a territory disputed by Morocco and the pro-independence Sahrawis of the Polisario Front.

Bardem also explores issues of male dominance and patriarchy.

"You have to be aware of what you, as a man, do and say... and not take for granted that many things we were indoctrinated with have to remain in place. They were wrong," said Bardem, husband of Spanish star Penelope Cruz, with whom he has two children.