Young women wait for a bus, backdropped by an advertisement for the movie Snow White on International Women's Day in downtown Bucharest, Romania, Saturday, March 8, 2025. (AP)

Disney’s latest live-action film “Snow White” will not be screened in Lebanon after authorities officially banned it this week over the casting of Israeli actress Gal Gadot, a former IOF soldier and outspoken supporter of "Israel".

In a statement issued Monday, the Lebanese Ministry of Interior said that Interior Minister Ahmad Hajjar signed an order on April 11 enforcing the nationwide ban, following a recommendation from the General Security’s media censorship committee. Gadot appears on Lebanon’s official "boycott list" due to her being Israeli and her previous military service.

In a similar vein, local media in Kuwait reported that leading cinema chains in the country have decided to cancel screenings of Disney’s upcoming live-action Snow White amid growing public outrage and calls to ban the film.

According to the report, sustained public pressure led to the cancellation, reflecting what the local media described as Kuwait’s “firm stance against normalization with Israel.”

Not an isolated incident

The ban marks the third instance in which Lebanon has prohibited a film starring Gal Gadot, following previous decisions to block Wonder Woman in 2017 and Death on the Nile in 2022.

Under Lebanese law, any cultural, commercial, or interpersonal contact with Israelis is strictly outlawed and may be prosecuted as treason or espionage offenses that carry prison sentences or even the death penalty. Travel to "Israel" is also forbidden. These provisions are enshrined in Lebanon’s criminal code, the 1955 Boycott Law, and the military justice framework.

Controversy also surrounds “Captain America: Brave New World,” which features Israeli actress Shira Haas. The film is currently showing in Lebanon, prompting criticism from pro-boycott campaigners. Haas, who is not on Lebanon’s blacklist, portrays Sabra—a character originally introduced in Marvel comics as an Israeli Mossad agent and superhero wearing blue-and-white with a Star of David. The movie version reimagines her as an American agent after accusations that the character endorsed Israeli policies.

The name “Sabra” also evokes painful historical memory in Lebanon, referencing the 1982 massacre of Palestinian refugees at the Sabra and Shatila camps, carried out by right-wing Lebanese militias with Israeli military support.

In its statement, the Lebanese Interior Ministry said it had approved the screening of “Captain America: Brave New World” on the basis of national security advice and emphasized that Haas was not blacklisted.

“Snow White,” in which Gadot plays the Evil Queen, was released in the UAE on March 20 and is scheduled to debut in cinemas across Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Jordan by April 17, according to Disney MENA. Egyptian film distributor Mahmoud al-Defrawy confirmed the film’s release in Egypt this Wednesday.

The film premiered in the United States on March 21 but has underperformed at the box office. Its lead actress, Rachel Zegler, has also drawn attention for her outspoken support for Palestinian rights. Last August, she posted on X (formerly Twitter): “And always remember, free Palestine.”

Meanwhile, Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon have continued. According to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, at least 71 civilians have been killed in Lebanon as of April 15 as "Israel" continues to violate, on a daily basis, a US-brokered ceasefire that ended the war on November 27, 2024.

The Israeli aggression, which erupted on October 8, 2023, has claimed over 4,000 lives in Lebanon.