Shira Haas in Captain America: Brave New World
Marvel Studios/Screenshots
Captain America: Brave New World It’s a debate that has been going on for decades and has been intensified by current events.
The film stars Anthony Mackie as Captain America and Harrison Ford, who makes his Marvel Studios debut as President Thaddeus Ross, taking over from the late William Hurt. The first trailer was released early Friday morning and has been met with rave reviews from fans.
But a supporting cast member has unintentionally come under fire, leading to calls to boycott the film.Unorthodox) will play Ruth Bat-Seraph, an Israeli-born former Black Widow who is now a high-ranking U.S. government official.
The backlash against the character stems from her original appearance in the comics: Ruth was formerly known as Sabra and worked as a Mossad agent. Some pro-Israel advocates object to the character’s loyalty to a US institution, while anti-Israel advocates protest against the character because of her origins (or simply because she is Israeli).
The situation is complicated and misinformation is rife. Some speculate that the character’s name and backstory have been changed due to recent events, some of those calling for a boycott don’t realize her backstory has changed at all, and many others who do realize the character has been changed say it doesn’t matter.
The change actually dates back to 2022, when Marvel announced at the D23 Expo that Haas would be joining the MCU. At the time, the Palestinian Movement for an Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel slammed the decision, calling the “original comics’ ugly racism and glorification of Mossad sickening.”
At the time, the studio revealed that the character’s background would be changed, A statement was issued Speaking on the matter, he said, “While our characters and storylines are inspired by the comics, they are constantly being re-imagined for the big screen and a modern audience. The filmmakers are taking a fresh approach to the character of Sabra, who first appeared in the comics over 40 years ago.”
Marvel occasionally updates its characters to reflect the modern era. Doctor Strange For example, the character Won Immersed in metaphors The character wasn’t featured when it was created in 1963, but was embraced in the updated film form.
in Captain America 4The name Sabra is not used. This character was first The Incredible Hulk She first appeared in a comic book in 1980, wearing a blue and white costume emblazoned with a Star of David. She has been called Israel’s first superheroine and was an important part of the Marvel Comics universe, despite not having her own series.
However, this original comic character was considered problematic by some because Sabra often plays into Arab terrorist tropes. And the name Sabra has several meanings. It can mean someone born in Israel, or it’s the name of a tree with fruit that’s thorny on the outside and sweet on the inside. But it’s also the name of a Lebanese refugee camp where militias massacred hundreds of Palestinians in 1982 while Israeli troops looked on. This was two years after the character’s first appearance, another piece of misinformation circulating online. Some claim Marvel intentionally named the character after the massacre.
One protest message currently circulating reads, “This character’s past includes working for the genocidal Israeli government and its occupying forces. By resurrecting this racist character in any way, Marvel is promoting Israeli oppression of Palestinians.”
At the same time, it is hard to imagine that the appearance of Israeli heroes at major pop culture events in 2024 would not invite protests from some quarters, as Eden Golan found out when she endured anti-Semitic backlash after competing in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest.
Marvel has not commented on the matter. Check out the new trailer here:
