Camille Naredo

Article (news)

Javier Bardem

Agence France-Presse

CANNES, France -- Spanish superstar Javier Bardem, who is winning rave reviews for his latest film role, slammed the &quot;toxic masculinity&quot; of Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday which he said was responsible for their wars.Bardem plays an overbearing film director with an explosive temper in &quot;The Beloved&quot; by Rodrigo Sorogoyen, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on Saturday to widespread praise from critics.<div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/showbiz/movies-series/2026/5/12/cannes-film-festival-opens-grappling-with-ai-and-hollywood-1503">READ: Cannes Film Festival opens, grappling with AI and Hollywood</a></div>In an expletive-laden outburst at a press conference on Sunday, Bardem said part of his character&#x27;s flaws were due to &quot;toxic masculinity&quot; which led to men killing their ex-wives and girlfriends -- and starting wars.&quot;That problem also goes to Mr Trump and Mr Putin and Mr Netanyahu,&quot; Bardem, 57, said, referring to the US, Russian and Israeli leaders.&quot;The big boss man saying, &#x27;My c*ck is bigger than yours and I&#x27;m going to bomb the sh*t out of you&#x27;,&quot; he added, saying that it was &quot;creating thousands of dead people&quot;.Bardem has been one of the most outspoken film stars against Israel&#x27;s war in Gaza since 2023, triggered by a deadly Hamas attack in Israel that year. The Israeli campaign has devastated the Palestinian territory and killed more than 72,000 people, more than half of them women and children, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.A &quot;genocide&quot; is &quot;still being committed&quot;, Bardem said.&quot;It&#x27;s a fact. You can try to justify it, explain it, but it&#x27;s a fact. If you justify it with your silence or your support, you are pro-genocide.&quot;<div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2026/5/7/israel-has-manufactured-malnutrition-crisis-in-gaza-1310">READ: Israel has &#x27;manufactured malnutrition crisis&#x27; in Gaza—MSF</a></div>Israel denies genocide. Its assault and invasion of Gaza came after Hamas staged the worst-ever attack on it, in which 1,221 people were killed, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.Speaking to AFP on Saturday, Bardem said he was &quot;getting more work than ever&quot; despite his public campaigning against Israel&#x27;s war in Gaza, something he attributed to &quot;the narrative changing&quot; around the conflict.Other cinema figures, including acclaimed actress Susan Sarandon, have previously complained about their work drying up after their public statements and decision to sign petitions denouncing Israel&#x27;s actions in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.

Spanish superstar Javier Bardem, who is winning rave reviews for his latest film role, slammed the "toxic masculinity" of Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday which he said was responsible for their wars.

Spanish superstar Javier Bardem, who is winning rave reviews for his latest film role, slammed the "toxic masculinity" of Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday which he said was responsible for their wars.

'Toxic' males Trump, Putin, Netanyahu to blame for wars, says star Bardem

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'Toxic' males Trump, Putin, Netanyahu to blame for wars, says star Bardem

Agence France-Presse

Published May 18, 2026 12:19 AM PHT

Read More:

Cannes

France

Javier Bardem

Gaza

Palestine

Israel

United States

Donald Trump

Vladimir Putin

Benjamin Netanyahu

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