Writers Speak Out Against Terrorism in Israel
AN OPEN LETTER —
As screenwriters, we know that words matter. We spend weeks, months, years agonizing over getting the story straight, the dialogue, the message.
But we also write the silences. They are scripted in the whites of the page and they speak volumes. Every lack of response, every blind-eye turned, every coward who says nothing in the face of cruelty. We write it all. Silence as ignorance. Silence as indifference. Silence as inaction.
When it comes to taking a stand, the Writers Guild of America has always led by example. When employers sought to exploit our work, the Guild bravely spoke up. When the BLM movement took flight, the Guild rightfully spoke up. When the #MeToo reckoning came and Hollywood needed to change, again the Guild spoke up.
But when terrorists invaded Israel to murder, rape, and kidnap Jews… the Guild stayed silent.
It remains the only major Hollywood union to do so.
We are a group of screenwriters who wish to clearly and forcefully condemn the heinous crimes committed by Hamas against innocent civilians.
The conflict between Israel and the Palestinian people is complex and full of nuance, but the crimes committed on October 7th were simple and cruel. If we cannot stand up to call it what it is — a monstrous act of barbarity — then we have lost the plot.
We sign our names to this letter as individuals, apart from our union, but united in our shared humanity and duty to denounce evil where we see it.
Signed,
Writers Speak Out
To add your name below, email writersspeakout@gmail.com
Seth Fisher
Amy Chozick
Eli Roth
Scott Frank
Jerry Seinfeld
Sascha Seinfeld
Howard Gordon
Simon Kinberg
Robert King
Amy Sherman-Palladino
Jenji Kohan
Sarah Treem
John Gatins
David S. Goyer
Eric Roth
Matthew Weiner
Steve Blackman
Gideon Raff
Graham Yost
Aline Brosh McKenna
Susannah Grant
Chip Johannessen
Matt Miller
Seth Rudetsky
Josh Gad
Sacha Baron Cohen
Marc Guggenheim
Brian Koppelman
David Shore
James Patterson
Steven Levitan
Chris Morgan
Zak Penn
Michael Seitzman
Noah Oppenheim
Andrea Berloff
Jon Steinberg
Rachel Shukert
Scott Neustadter
Gene Stupnitsky
Ellen Rapoport
Josh Schwartz
Eric Newman
Marc Webb
Joe Weisberg
Jonathan Abrams
Michael Konyves
Joel Fields
Steven Kane
Jason Richman
Jennie Snyder Urman
Ben Nedivi
Robert Mark Kamen
Stephen Schiff
Bryan Cogman
Joanna Leeds
Lee Eisenberg
Mickey Fisher
DJ Nash
Larry Stuckey
Mark Feuerstein
Matt Corman
Evan Wright
Jeff Rake
David Kohan
Jason Fuchs
Lauren Fields
Chris Bremner
Allan Loeb
Hank Steinberg
Peter Landesman
Jake Schnesel
Skye Knight Dent
Scott Milam
Matthew Salsberg
Grant Scharbo
Austin Winsberg
Danielle Bauman
Warren Bell
Amy B Harris
KJ Steinberg
Beth Schwartz
Joe Sachs
Danny Mackey
Kirker Butler
Jon Macks
David DiGilio
Marilee Albert
Alison Greenberg
Scott Rosenbaum
Dina Gusovsky
Gabriel Sherman
Jaime Paglia
Nick Bilton
Jonathan Jakubowicz
Rina Mimoun
Ron Rappaport
Kim Rome
Dave Appelbaum
Imogen Browder
Bob Bendetson
Jennifer Haley
Joseph Epstein
Dean Lorey
Judith McCreary
Halil Ozsan
Jeremy Passmore
Frank Rodriguez Moll
Annie Levine
Susan Jaffee
Rebecca Angelo
Steven Lilien
Lauren Schuker Blum
Cory Goodman
Sammy Horowitz
Mike Weiss
Becky Hartman Edwards
Trey Callaway
Jeremy Garelick
Elon Gold
Randi Mayem Singer
Wendy Straker Hauser
Barbie Kligman
Peter Lenkov
Jeremy Powell
Avishai Weinberger
Bryan Carmel
Tad Quill
Cameron Litvack
Adam Pasen
Jon Feldman
Jason Markarian
Seth Grossman
Sophie Owens-bender
John Dove
Sarah Watson
Dan Kopelman
Burr Steers
Dana Klein
David Misch
Eric Tuchman
David Casio
Steven Lilien
Josh Schaer
Jordan Ross Schindler
Peter Beals
Kate Angelo
Mikko Alanne
Barry Schkolnick
Royale Watkins
Stacy Rukeyser
Elizabeth Laime
Scott Weinger
Melissa London Hilfers
Deborah Schoeneman
Michael Doneger
Stephen Hootstein
Jessica Sharzer
Ian Deitchman
Michael H. Weber
Lindsey Rosin
Jonathan Prince
Lenn Rosenfeld
Jonny Umansky
Ilana Wernick
Terrence Coli
Eric Guggenheim
Josh Koenigsberg
Patrick Moss
Mitchell Akselrad
Jennifer Levin
David Weissman
Karen Rosin
Jennifer Cecil
D.M. Harring
Deirdre Shaw
David J. Rosen
Jeff Astrof
Leslie Schapira
Melanie Kirschbaum
Andre Fabrizio
Chris Sivertson
Jeremy Lott
John Turman
Joanie Strulowitz
Aaron Karo
Jill Blankenship
Jim Reynolds
David N. Weiss
Gracie Glassmeyer
David S. Rosenthal
Lacey Friedman
Sarah Heyward
Charles Horn
Mitch Paradise
Korby Siamis
MDJ Clarke
Greg Lessans
Noah Nelson
Jonathan Emerson
Ashley Charbonnet
Tony Camerino
B. W. McFadden
Arika Lisanne Mittman
Katie Wech
Rich Dahm
Craig A. Williams
Daniel Arkin
Reinhard Denke
Emily Fox
Jordana Lewis Jaffe
Gisselle Legere
David Kendall
Liz Kruger
Seth Kurland
Adam Milch
Chelsea Myers
Sam Pitman
Krystal Houghton Ziv
Eileen Heisler
David Kukoff
Aaron Buchsbaum
Jamie Denbo
Tony Phelan
Josh Eiserike
Mike Diaz
Lynette L. Sanford
Ron McGee
Chad Gomez Creasey
Cathy Yuspa
Bryan Wynbrandt
Rebecca Ewing
Brett Gursky
Victoria Gordon
Marianne Wibberley
Cormac Wibberley
Roger Kumble
Josh Feldman
Robert Glynn
Bob Kushell
Kenny Neibart
David Zabel
David Bickel
Nick Bakay
Anne Flett-Giordano
Larry Cohen
Aaron Shure
David Feige
Inon Shampanier
Natalie Shampanier
Stuart Zicherman
Joel H. Cohen
Adam Cole-Kelly
Philip Rosenthal
Jorge A. Reyes
Jim Garvey
Seth Grossman
Alec Sokolow
Jonathan Goldman
R. Lee Fleming, Jr.
Dave Caplan
Liz Astrof
Jorge Zamacona
Amanda Kate Shuman
Frank Megna
Natalie Drayer
Jeff Drayer
Kyle Bradstreet
Michael Rauch
Arthur Jeon
Jaron Lowenstein
Jake Coburn
David Levien
Sheryl Levine Guterman
Adam Karp
Jan Oxenberg
Emil Stern
Chris K.T. Bright
Julie Sherman Wolfe
Jeremy Haft
Joe Port
David Grae
Kelly Wiles
Eric Goldberg
Sherri Cooper Landesman
Jordan Hawley
Eddie Gonzalez
Lew Schneider
Stefanie Leder
Liz Vassey
Matthew Ross
Jessica Lundy
Kent Rotherham
Jonathan AH Stewart
Andrew Barrer
Gabriel Ferrari
Katie Varney
Elisa Delson
Brad Desch
Scott Shapiro
Daniel Pipski
Michael Borkow
Romi Barta
Jessica Queller
Ashley E. Miller
Mark A. Altman
Josh Brand
Andrea King
Ben Wexler
Dr. Sonya Odamtten
Jonathan Tropper
Dean Lowry
Brian Ross
Elena Song
David Diamond
David Weissman
Bill Kelly
Lee Farber
Kate Gersten
Etan Frankel
Lynn McPherson
Harry Stein
Priscilla Turner
Jim Danger Gray
Yael Glouberman
Jenny Tripp
Gerald Garibaldi
Dan Signer
Danny Weiss
Jennifer Maisel
Emily Silver
Michal Schick
Aron Coleite
Carla Kettner
Alexandra Cunningham
Dan Levy
Roy Schwartz
Val Stulman
Lenore Zion
Travis Betz
Amy Engelberg
Wendy Engelberg
Bruce Feirstein
Steven Frank
Tod Williams
Jace Anderson
Alex Litvak
Emily Whitesell
Stephanie Liss
Craig Silverstein
Michael Green
Andy Gordon
Steven Sater
Brian Behar
Christopher Silber
Daniel Rosenberg
Joelle Boucai
Josh Berman
Alyssa Hill
Bill Freiberger
Wendy Mericle
Micky Levy
Andy Roth
Anna Ziegler
Michael Kaplan
Steve Lichtman
John Hlavin
Rick Muirragui
Michael Brandt
Andrew Colville
Michael Taylor
Michael Barrie
Christopher Wilkinson
Geoff Rodkey
Alex Taub
Jon Kinnally
Eli Kooris
Amanda Jaffa
Nicholas Osborne
Michael Gilvary
Marlyn Vinig
Jared Moshe
Jay Kogen
Jeff Pinkner
Fred Jasper
Libby Friz
Jessica Poter
Steve Vitolo
Rich Appel
Bennett Tramer
Faye Fayerman
Charles Pratt, Jr.
Carol Leifer
Timothy Dowling
Tim Herlihy
Jeffrey Lippman
Jason Venokur
Jim Burnstein
Clifford J. Green
Julia Harter
Shani Am. Moore
Michael Glouberman
David Jaher
Jenn Levine
Jeremy Drysdale
Devra Maza
Lara Azzopardi
Adam Glass
Michael Benson
Robert Hanning
Adam Mazer
Gary Greenberg
Jeff Bushell
Josh Halloway
William Massa
Erin Simon
Lauren Gussis
Madeline Hendricks Lewen
Art Eisenson
Katherine Friedman Holland
Grant Holland
Hal Friedman
Andrea Fay Friedman
Diane Saltzman
Marc Abrams
Sara Eisenson
Steve De Jarnatt