Ethan Hawke warned during a film festival in Germany that the opinions of entertainers are valid, in that they are people like anybody else, but not the first source to go to.
Media Ethan Hawke warns against looking to 'jet-lagged, drunk' actors for political wisdom 'I feel like there's a slight agenda to your question that is different than my agenda' he responded to a later question By Alexander Hall Fox News Published February 17, 2026 9:30pm EST Facebook Twitter Threads Flipboard Comments Print Email Add Fox News on Google close Video Spencer Pratt says Hollywood stars privately support him but are scared to speak out The reality TV star and Los Angeles mayoral candidate says A-list celebrities privately agree with him but are afraid to risk their careers by speaking out. NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Actor Ethan Hawke took multiple political questions from an audience at a film festival on Tuesday, but warned that people should not put too much stock in the advice of "jet-lagged, drunk artists." During the press conference for his new historical drama "The Weight," the Oscar-nominated actor received a question from German news outlet "Jung and Naiv." A journalist from the local outlet asked him for his opinion on the role of artists to use their voices amid the rise of "fascism" in Europe and America."AlrightâŠ" Hawke began, sounding somewhat put off by the question. "The last place you probably want to look for advice in your spiritual council is a bunch of jet-lagged, drunk artists talking about their film," the actor said, sparking laughter from the audience. "That said, I love the movies and I believe in the power of cinema to affect - they're kind of like, you know, how every night we all dream and these those dreams kind of heal us and get us ready for the next day. In a lot of ways, I feel like collectively the whole festival, all of you, all of us here are responsible for creating an international dream life." JON STEWART DISMISSES CALL TO RUN FOR OFFICE, WARNS NOT TO TRUST TV STARS AS POLITICAL LEADERS Actor Ethan Hawke, actor, spoke at a press conference for the film "The Weight" (Photo by Sebastian Christoph Gollnow/picture alliance via Getty Images) Hawke then pivoted to praise the film he worked on as one where a group of people who donât have anything in common set their differences aside to combat "institutional greed and malevolence."He then concluded that, ultimately, "anything that fights fascism, Iâm all for. Hawke took another question from the audience, who noted the recent open letter from many celebrities asking the festival to take a stance on the war in Gaza, and ultimately "how you feel about Palestinian voices, artists being criticized or silenced as there is an ongoing genocide.""I have no context for that question," Hawke said, noting he doesnât know about the names who signed the open letter. BILL MAHER SAYS DEMS NEED TO TELL CELEBRITIES TO 'SHUT THE F--- UP,' HOLLYWOOD IS HOLDING PARTY BACK When asked about politics, actor Ethan Hawke noted that he has previously faced backlash for speaking out. (Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images) "The last time I spoke publicly about any of this, I was really shocked at how much animosity it was met with and of people saying things like âActors shouldn't talk about politicsâ or things like that. And I really feel like the answer is the absolute inverse is that everybody should be. We're all citizens of the world and all of us matter, and all of us have a voice and everybody's welcome to disagree."He continued, "That's part of the benefits of living in a free society. And yeah, we get microphones thrown in front of our face. But that's not because we're telling anybody what to do. We're just citizens sharing our opinion. And you're willing to make of it what you will. We're not - some of the greatest minds in the world have tried to make the planet live in peace and and it seems to be very difficult for humanity.âHe later concluded, "I feel like there's a slight agenda to your question that is different than my agenda, but I respect you and I respect the question." CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF MEDIA AND CULTURE Actor Ethan Hawke ultimately rejected the idea of speaking directly about Gaza. ( Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images)CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Alexander Hall is an associate editor for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to
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