Shari Redstone Joins Israeli Film Company Amidst Growing Hollywood Boycott
LOSโค ANGELES, CA – Former โคParamount Global chair Shari Redstone has taken aโ position with anโ Israeli film and television company, sources confirmed, as a burgeoningโข boycott movement gains traction within Hollywood โขover the ongoing conflict in Gaza. Theโฃ move comes just months after the $8 billion merger โคbetween Skydance and Paramount closed in August, ending the Redstone family’s โคdecades-long controllingโ stake in the mediaโ conglomerate.
Redstone’s involvement with the โคIsraeli company-details of which remain undisclosed-occurs against aโข backdrop of increasing pressure on the โentertainment industry to take a stance on the conflict. A growingโฃ numberโ of film workers have pledged to boycott projects with ties toโ Israel, with hundreds of signatories including prominent actors like Emma Stone, โOlivia Colman, and Ava DuVernay.โค The pledge,โ organized by film Workers for โPalestine, calls for an end to all โwork on โคproductions that support or are funded by entities connected to the Israeli government.
The Redstone family’s history with Paramount stretches back generations. Herโข father, the late billionaire Sumner Redstone, acquiredโ Paramount Picturesโข in 1994, and her grandfather, Michael Redstone, founded theater operator โคNational Amusements, which was absorbed into Paramount during the recent Skydance โmerger.โ Shari Redstone served as โParamount’s chairwoman since 2019, navigating a period of significant industry disruption and ultimately overseeing the deal thatโ ended her family’s control.
During the merger process, Paramount facedโ political headwinds, includingโฃ a lawsuit filed by former President Donald โTrump alleging CBS News deceptively edited an interview with his election opponent, Vice President kamala Harris. The lawsuit was โคlater settled. Redstone previously told the newโ Yorkโฃ Times that she believed Trump’s scrutiny of โCBSโ News โขcould possibly lead to more balanced reporting, stating, “Part of me thought, โmaybeโข Trumpโ could accomplish what I never got done.”
The โboycottโ movementโ has prompted โresponses from industry organizations, including the Israeli Producers Association,โข and has sparked debate about the role of artists and corporations in political conflicts. Paramount itself recently criticized โa celebrity-endorsed call for an Israeli โคfilm boycott, according toโฃ the New York Times.
