Nicola Coughlan Recalls Being Told “You Won’t Get Work” Over Her Palestine Support

Christy Piña
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Nicola Coughlan opened up about her support for Palestine and how she was told it could affect the acting gigs she’s offered.

In a Teen Vogue cover story, the Bridgerton star sat down to discuss the show’s upcoming and highly anticipated season three. In the conversation, she also got candid about her support for a ceasefire in Gaza.

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Coughlan has been vocal on social media about her support for the people, especially the children, of Palestine, who are caught in the middle of the Israel-Hamas War. She acknowledged her support stems from a “moral responsibility to give back” because of her privilege as a white woman.

The actress noted her advocacy began before she landed her breakout role on Derry Girls. She was involved in different causes, like going door-to-door campaigning for marriage equality in her home country of Ireland and marching for abortion rights.

“I’ve always cared about causes and social justice,” she told the publication. “To me, it always becomes about supporting all innocent people, which sounds oversimplified, but I think you’ve got to look at situations and just think, ‘Are we supporting innocent people no matter where they’re from, who they are?’ That’s my drive.”

The Big Mood star has been warned about the precarious state of Hollywood amid the conflict, specifically in regard to what’s going on in Gaza. She’s heard that certain agents, agencies and studios may not want to work with her because of her support, but she continues to wear her Artists4Ceasefire pin.

“You do get told, ‘You won’t get work, you won’t do this,'” she admitted. “But I also think, deep down, if you know that you’re coming from a place of ‘I don’t want any innocent people to suffer,’ then I’m not worried about people’s reactions.”

She explained to the publication that she feels like social media has boxed people into corners that make it seem like the Israel-Gaza conflict is black or white when that’s not actually the case.

“More of us should be trying to understand,” Coughlan said, “how upsetting and traumatizing this is for Jewish people, and how horrific it is that all these innocent people in Palestine are being murdered.”

The Barbie actress isn’t the only celebrity to vocalize their support for Palestine, despite the possibility of being singled out for it in the industry.

Scream VI star Melissa Barrera was dropped from the franchise’s seventh installment after she shared a series of social media posts expressing her support for Palestine on social media. Spyglass, the company behind the horror films, issued a statement at the time saying it had “zero tolerance for anti-Semitism.”

“None of this makes me happy,” Barrera previously told The Hollywood Reporter about the Scream fallout. “It was just all sad because I really, deeply care about the franchise. It’s just bad that it had to happen like that.”

Coughlan and Barrera aren’t alone. Shortly after Hamas’ terrorist attack on Israel on Oct. 7, hundreds of celebrities (including Andrew Garfield, Kristen Stewart, Oscar Isaac and Quinta Brunson) signed a letter urging President Joe Biden to call for a ceasefire in Gaza. At the 2024 Oscars, Ramy Youssef, Billie Eilish, Finneas O’Connell and Ava DuVernay were among the celebrities wearing an Artists4Ceasefire pin.

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