‘Death on the Nile’ banned in Lebanon and Kuwait due to… Gal Gadot
Disney’s Death on the Nile has been banned from showing in theaters in Lebanon and Kuwait due to star Gal Gadot’s past service in the Israeli military, according to Deadline.
Death on the Nile stars Gal Gadot alongside Kenneth Branagh (who also directed the film), Annette Bening, Emma McKay, Tom Bateman, etc.
Both Lebanon and Kuwait have banned the Disney detective film due to protests over Gal Gadot’s two-year service in the Israeli military. Wonder Woman blockbuster star Gal Gadot (36 years old) was born in Israel and served in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) before becoming a model and actress, as all citizens are required to do under the Military Service Law.
Israel and Lebanon are at war over technology. The Arab country has a law banning products originating from Israel.
This is not the first time a film starring Gal Gadot has been banned. Lebanon previously banned Wonder Woman in 2017, as well as its sequel Wonder Woman 1984.
Death on the Nile saw Kenneth Branagh reprise his role as detective Hercule Poirot from Murder on the Orient Express. The film was marred by controversy: actor Armie Hammer (who played Simon Doyle) was accused of sexual assault before filming began.
Armie Hammer is currently facing rape charges against a woman (known only as Effie) who claims Hammer “violently” raped her for four hours in Los Angeles in 2017, “slamming her head against a wall” and “hitting her legs with a wooden stick”.
In a previous statement shared with People, Hammer’s attorney denied the rape allegations, saying that the encounter between Hammer and Effie was “completely consensual, discussed, agreed upon in advance, and mutually attended.”
Following a press conference in March 2021 hosted by Effie, the Los Angeles Police Department confirmed that Hammer was being investigated for sexual assault in a case opened in February 2021.
Death on the Nile is a 2018 American detective mystery film directed by Kenneth Branagh from a screenplay by Michael Green, based on the 1937 novel of the same name by British author Agatha Christie. Produced by Branagh, Ridley Scott, Judy Hofflund, and Kevin J. Walsh, the film is a sequel to Murder on the Orient Express (2017), starring Branagh as Hercule Poirot. The film is the third adaptation of Christie’s novel of the same name, following the 1978 film and a 2004 episode of the television series Agatha Christie’s Poirot.
Filming began in September 2019 at Longcross Studios in the UK and Morocco, and wrapped in December 2019. Death on the Nile premiered in France and South Korea, and was released internationally on February 9, 2022, before hitting theaters in the UK and the US on February 11, 2022. The film received mixed reviews from critics.
Gal Gadot plays Linnet Ridgeway-Doyle, Simon Doyle’s wife, in Death on the Nile. Media in her home country dubbed her “Israel’s biggest superstar”. Gal Gadot was named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world in 2018 and has twice made the annual list of the world’s highest-paid actresses.
