Superman’s New Jimmy Olsen Sparks Backlash

News that Skyler Gisondo has been cast as Jimmy Olsen in DC Studios’ upcoming Superman: Legacy movie has been met with backlash, amid accusations the actor is a Zionist.

It was announced on Wednesday that Gisondo will be stepping into the role of affable cub reporter Olsen, who works alongside Clark Kent/Superman and Lois Lane at newspaper The Daily Planet, in the James Gunn-directed movie.

Gisondo—known for roles in Netflix’s Santa Clarita Diet and HBO comedy The Righteous Gemstones—will join David Corenswet, who has been cast as Kent/Superman, and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel‘s Rachel Brosnahan, who will play Lane. Model Sara Sampaio will portray Eve Teschmacher, the assistant of villain Lex Luthor, played by Nicholas Hoult.

Principal photography is scheduled to begin early in 2024, with a release date currently set as July 11, 2025.

Shortly after the news was made public, a host of social media users went from excitement to condemnation, as it was stated that Gisondo’s Instagram account had been credited for liking posts showing support for Israel amid its conflict with Hamas.

Gisondo has been called a Zionist by a number of social media users, after screenshots were shown of his X account following the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on the platform.

Zionism refers to the Jewish nationalist movement formed in 1897 that pushed to create a state for Jewish people in Palestine. This eventually led to the formation of Israel in 1948, following the Holocaust, which saw more than 6 million Jews die. However, critics of Zionism have argued the creation of Israel forced Palestinians off their land in what is called the Nakba.

Gisondo has also been shown to like an Instagram post shared by Stranger Things star Noah Schnapp, who has faced backlash over a video showing him posing with “Zionism is Sexy” stickers. A post that Gisondo purportedly liked shows Schnapp saying he wants “peace for both Palestinians and Israelis.”

Newsweek has contacted representatives of Gisondo and DC via email for comment.

Taking to X, formerly Twitter, a number of people pointed to the negative consequences Susan Sarandon and Melissa Barrera have faced for their support of Palestinians in recent days.

One wrote: “To recap: Melissa Barrera was fired from Scream 7 due to being pro-Palestine. Susan Sarandon was dropped from her talent agency due to being pro-Palestine. Skyler Gisondo, a Zionist, was just cast as Jimmy Olsen in Superman: Legacy.”

The X user added in a follow-up post that “antisemitism and antizionism aren’t the same, conflating the two is harmful to Jewish people.”

“Skyler Gisondo, who was recently celebrated for being cast as Jimmy Olsen in ‘SUPERMAN: LEGACY’, is allegedly a Zionist,” said another. “Allegations emerged once Gisondo was caught liking pro-Israel posts, and furthered by the fact he follows the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on X.”

Directly addressing film director Gunn, another wrote: “Hey @JamesGunn, did you know that Skyler Gisondo is a Zionist who is in support of Israel, which is currently committing a genocide against the Palestinian people? Superman wouldn’t stand for the subjugation and slaughter of people. So those that do should not be on your cast.”

“Thus far, I thought the casting choices for Superman: Legacy have been fairly good,” they added. “But this is one huge misstep that you have ample time to course correct on. I hope you’ll consider this. I love Superman, but I cannot support a movie that casts people who are okay with genocide.”

Another said that they were initially excited about the Superman: Legacy casting news until they “found out Skyler Gisondo was a Zionist.”

Amid the wave of criticism, a host of other X users spoke out in Gisondo’s defense, with one saying: “I can’t believe you’re trying to ruin a man’s career over nothing.”

The X user went on to insist that the actor “isn’t a Zionist,” adding: “I love these fake ‘Twitter’ activists talking about s*** they know nothing about sitting at home in your comfy bed. If you care so much, go to the front lines then.”

“You can’t cancel Skyler Gisondo over some minimal rather harmless stuff he apparently clicked like on, [in my opinion],” another commented. “Even more importantly people shouldn’t be cancelled for being righteously anti-Zionist. Just saying…”

“I don’t think every slightly quietly Zionist Jewish person needs to be utterly destroyed,” they went on. “We can attempt to have a conversation with these people. After all, we do have to share this planet with people we disagree with.”

Another said: “Honestly bro, [I don’t care] at this point. So many people have their own opinions on delicate situations like this and people put way too much stock into that instead of just judging the performance.”

Heightened tensions in the Middle East have become a contentious talking point in the weeks since Hamas launched an October 7 surprise attack on Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking about 240 hostages to the Gaza Strip, according to the Associated Press.

Israel responded with airstrikes and a ground invasion after declaring war on Hamas. An estimated two-thirds of Gaza’s 2.3 million population have been displaced, while more than 13,300 people have been killed there and thousands injured, according to the AP.

Following calls for a ceasefire, Hamas this week announced a deal—reached with mediation from the U.S., Egypt and Qatar—that will see 50 hostages released from the Gaza Strip in exchange for 150 Palestinian prisoners being held in Israeli jails, all women and children.

Hamas accounts of the deal said Israel will pause air operations in southern Gaza, restrict them to six hours per day in the north and will not bring any military ground vehicles into the Strip.

The Israeli government, meanwhile, said it would extend the ceasefire for one day for every 10 additional hostages released. Hamas said the ceasefire would begin at 10 a.m. local time on Thursday, while the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) could not confirm when the “operational pause” will begin.

While the criticism of celebrities who speak out about the current Israel-Hamas conflict makes the silence of others understandable, Evan Nierman, CEO of global PR firm Red Banyan, previously told Newsweek that celebrities should be applauded, not attacked, for being willing to share their points of view.

“I think that this is a tricky situation, because on the one hand, people reflexively want to somehow strike a balance [when it comes to] the death of innocents on both sides, which makes sense,” Nierman said. “However, there is a fundamental difference between that and targeting innocent civilians, for murder and mutilation.

“So I don’t think playing the moral equivalency game goes very far when you’re trying to compare a Western-style democracy that operates with integrity to a bloodthirsty terrorist organization.

“And I think that there are a lot of people who do not understand the dynamics at play. They have very little knowledge of the details of Hamas, their ideology, and yet they just want to have comments on what’s going on.”

Nierman, author The Cancel Culture Curse, believes that heightened emotions around the conflict have made public figures feel compelled to share their opinions on the matter, even if those opinions are unpopular. This has seen several non-Jewish celebrities condemned for their statements on the war.

“It’s a scary scenario and a scary situation,” Nierman said. “And there is so much misinformation, and there’s so much hatred. And this has the potential to spiral well outside of the Middle East, and impact the lives of other people globally—especially within the Jewish community. I do think it takes a level of moral courage to weigh in on this topic, and by being willing to say things that will be unpopular with a certain set online.”