Erin Foster, creator of Netflix’s “Nobody Wants This,” says she disagrees with her show’s lead actor, Adam Brody, after he accused Israel of “genocide” and voiced support for a “free Palestine.”
Asked about Brody’s comments during an interview for the “Not Skinny But Not Fat” podcast, Foster said the disagreement was not unusual for people who work closely together. “You know, it’s complicated,” she said. “I think our work environment, our set is very similar to dinner tables around the world where people are having debate and discussion and disagreeing.”
“While I love Adam, I also disagree with him and that’s OK. I think that as the creator of the show, all I can say is that I want our Jewish fans to know that I see you and I hear you and I understand how you feel,” Foster added.
The full podcast episode featuring Foster is scheduled to air Oct. 27. Brody’s original remarks came during a September interview with GQ.
“Put me down as thinking it’s a genocide. Put me down as wanting a free Palestine,” Brody told GQ. “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.”
Brody also suggested that political activism among celebrities has cooled since Donald Trump’s first election. “I think it’s the cycle. The first time Trump was elected, it was inconceivable. It woke everyone,” he said. “There was so much activism. People were running for office that had never ran before. It was so awful to watch him defile our government, our country, our reputation, and really pit people against each other. I felt like most of the country right away was really against it.”
Foster says show was built as a ‘love letter’ to Judaism
Foster said the show’s purpose was never political. “That is why I made this show. It’s because of how beautiful of an experience I’ve had becoming Jewish and being a Jewish person and sitting here right now at this time in the world where there is almost zero positive representation of Jewish people. I think it’s so important to have that and that is what this show is intended to be,” she said.
She added that cast and crew remain free to hold differing views. “And that being said, everyone is entitled to a different opinion than me. I can just tell you what I created this show for and what the intention of the show is,” Foster said.
Fox News Digital reported it had reached out to Brody’s team for comment.
PR strategist: praise for Foster, criticism of pressure on dissenters
Mor Greenberg, founder of MorMedia Group, a firm that works with Jewish nonprofits and pro-Israel advocacy organizations, said in a statement that it was discouraging to see controversy surround one of the few mainstream shows centered on Jewish identity. “It’s disappointing to finally see a mainstream television show celebrating Jewish identity, only to have its leading actor make headlines for comments that are deeply upsetting to many in the Jewish community,” she said.
Greenberg argued that Hollywood exerts pressure toward a “fashionable position” on Israel while leaving “very little room for anyone who dares to defend it.” She said Brody is entitled to his political views but that “playing a rabbi on television doesn’t make him a spokesperson for the Jewish community.”
“That’s why I appreciate Erin Foster’s response. She understands that Jewish identity is bigger than Hollywood politics, and she isn’t afraid to stand behind the Jewish story she created. At a time when positive Jewish representation is so desperately needed, that matters,” Greenberg said.
The dispute arrives amid ongoing debate in entertainment circles over how public figures should speak about Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, with other celebrities drawing scrutiny for similar statements in recent months.
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