Maha Dakhil, Madonna and Anne Hathaway in 2014. Photo: Billy Farrell/BFA/Shutterstock
Maha Dakhil is one of the most powerful agents in Hollywood. She was recently recognized as one of the 50 most powerful women in entertainment. At powerhouse talent agency CAA, she represents Tom Cruise, Madonna and Reese Witherspoon, among others. She also served on the agency's 11-member board of directors. But on October 22, she resigned from the agency's internal board and her post as co-head of the film department after two Instagram posts about Hamas and Israel.
At first glance, this is a simple task. enough history. Dakhil came to America from Syria as a child. On October 18, she posted an anti-Israel story on Instagram with the line “Now you are learning who supports genocide.” She added her own message: “This is the line for me.”
Dakhil subsequently doubled down, posting a second photo with the caption: “What's more heartbreaking than witnessing genocide? I am a witness to the denial of the fact of genocide.”
Within an hour, she deleted the messages, apologized and late last week tried to arrange a meeting with some of her Jewish colleagues. The idea, according to a CAA employee who spoke to The Ankler, was to explain himself and apologize. Some colleagues outright refused to attend the meeting, and those who did were very clear about the damage they believed Dakhil had caused to herself and CAA.
In almost perfect timing, Samokhia's account owner took to the social media platform formerly known as Twitter on October 20 to post: “My cousin Maha, co-director of films at CAA, has been silenced for speaking out against genocide. Keep in mind that they control the narrative and silence everyone. I am very proud that she stood up for Palestine despite working in a room full of very powerful Zionists.”
Agent Maha Dakhil (right) with Anne Hathaway in 2022. Photo: Marion Curtis/StarPix/Shutterstock
It is unclear whether the account holder, who appears to be a student, is actually Dakhil's cousin. Either way, the damage was done. Two days later, Brian Lourd, Kevin Huvane and Richard Lovett—CAA's ruling triumvirate—announced her resignation with a soothing message: “In this time of too much division and suffering, we have decided to help each other; we choose to be compassionate and forgiving; and we choose the optimism of education and personal growth.”
Matthew Belloni, editor of Hollywood's most popular newspaper, Puck, nearly exploded at these words. “First of all… really? Optimism and personal growth??” he said on his excellent podcast The Town. “This comes from CAA, the most ruthless and cutthroat of Hollywood talent agencies—a place that routinely fires employees rather than give second chances, and which dispassionately ___ ended agent Jay Baker after 20 years when he sent a racially insensitive email joke,” he said. chuckled (Baker abruptly left CAA in 2021 after apologizing for an offensive remark). “They choose to be “compassionate and forgiving”?? I can't make it up. The actual message of the CAA, of course: racism is not okay; anti-Semitism is another story.”
As with everything Hollywood is trying to get under control this year, it's a little more complicated. Dakhil, for example, spoke at length on the Beyond Barriers podcast in May about her mentor and inspiration, Jewish agent Lee Cohen of CAA rival William Morris, who first spotted and hired her and then helped her get a job at CAA.
Maha Dakhil Jackson (second from left) with her client Tom Cruise at the London premiere of Mission: Impossible – Dead End – Part One. Getty
Guy Oseary, Madonna's Israeli manager and the first person to tell Dakhil that her repost was offensive, strongly defended her: “I know who she is, she's a good person. The minute I told her that this could be a trigger for Jews, she had no idea and immediately deleted it.”
Meanwhile, there is a theory about her semi-defenestration that sounds more like an internal power play than a righteous move. Dakhil, whose personal Instagram account is now one of the most stellar in Hollywood, is friends with his client Salma Hayek. Hayek is married to François-Henri Pinault, chairman of the Kering group of companies. Pino recently acquired CAA. There are rumors that Dakhil really wanted to take Brian Lourd's place. Either way, she has a lot of work to do, although most of her Jewish clients, including Steven Spielberg and Natalie Portman, show no signs of wanting to leave. (Aaron Sorkin, however, rejected her: Dakhil “is not anti-Semitic, she's just wrong,” he said in a statement.)
These rumors suit Elmore Leonard, but the truth is that Hollywood is tying itself in knots over the situation in Israel. On the one hand, more than 700 names, including Bradley Cooper, Courteney Cox, Chris Rock, Adam Sandler, Bob Odenkirk, Constance Wu, Tiffany Haddia, Aubrey Plaza, Zack Snyder and Shawn Levy, wrote letters to President Biden asking him to “don’t rest.” until all hostages are released.”
Maha Dakhil with her friend Salma Hayek Pinault in November Photo: Getty
On the other hand, British actors with Hollywood careers, including Tilda Swinton, Steve Coogan, Charles Dance and Miriam Margoyles, signed a letter condemning Israel but making no mention of the Hamas attacks. And 55 other actors wrote to Joe Biden, including Cate Blanchett, Joaquin Phoenix, Ramy Youssef and Andrew Garfield, demanding a ceasefire.
Meanwhile, John Cusack joined the Palestinian march in Chicago, and the Writers Guild of America has yet to issue any statement at all about the attacks. This is a brother in arms of SAG-AFTRA and a slightly disappointed one who gave up so quickly in the studio. The Directors Guild of America condemned the attacks and condemned 200 WGA members, including Sacha Baron Cohen and Jerry Seinfeld. Matt Weiner and Jenji Kohan condemned the WGA for its silence.
David Chappelle, God bless him, tried to walk a line during a recent show in Boston, criticizing the terrorist attacks, Israel and the US government. Towards the end of the performance, one member of the audience shouted at him to shut up, some chanted “Free Palestine”, and another group shouted: “What about Hamas?”
(from left) Hilaria Baldwin, Reese Witherspoon, Maha Dakhil, Alec Baldwin and Jim Toth in 2016. Photo: Getty
Perhaps seeking to unite all sides in bewildered disdain, Mark Ruffalo posted a rambling word salad on Instagram: “Regarding the tragic events taking place in Israel and Gaza, I am heartbroken by the untold suffering and loss of life and loved ones. . This horrific violence must end. Obviously I don't have the answers, but I feel it is absolutely necessary to focus on our shared human existence and reality. We hope that the sanctity of our common humanity will help heal the unimaginable wounds of division.”
The problem is that the recent surge of activity in Hollywood just hangs on the Internet like a trail of liberal evidence. Who spoke out about Black Lives Matter? Who was outraged by the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade? Who was active in Time's Up? Well, for starters, Maha Dakhil. She co-founded Time's Up, organized a talent agency for the Black Lives Matter march in Hollywood in June 2020, and held a summit to protest the court's abortion ruling. Dakhil has treaded the liberal path so carefully that some agents accuse her of using her political powers to poach her clients. She “uses her social activism as a weapon,” one rival told Belloni.
Another was even worse. sharply: “I have to believe that [Dakhil] will find it very difficult to do his job.”
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