The red carpets at Sundance are usually reserved for buzzy premieres and last minute dealmaking, but this year the spotlight swung hard toward politics. Olivia Wilde and Natalie Portman used their time in front of cameras to denounce Immigration and Customs Enforcement, tying the glitz of Park City to the grim reality of a protester’s killing. Their comments, sharpened by anger and grief, turned a film festival into a stage for a broader fight over state power and basic humanity.
Instead of politely sidestepping controversy, both actors leaned into it, calling out ICE’s conduct and the climate that allowed a fatal shooting of protester Alex Pretti. In doing so, they joined a growing chorus of artists at Sundance who are refusing to treat the festival as a bubble, insisting that the industry’s biggest winter gathering has to reckon with what is happening outside the theater doors.
The killing of Alex Pretti and a festival on edge
The emotional core of the backlash at Sundance is the killing of Alex Pretti, a protester whose death has become a rallying point for critics of ICE. Stars like Olivia Wilde and Natalie Portman have framed the shooting as a moral line, arguing that a government agency tasked with enforcement crossed into something far darker when a demonstration ended with a body on the ground. Their decision to speak out in Utah, rather than from a distant press release, underscored how closely the tragedy is now tied to the festival’s identity as a supposed safe space for bold, independent voices, and it is that collision of art and state violence that has electrified the conversation around ICE at Sundance.
On the streets around the screenings, the grief and anger have been just as visible as the step‑and‑repeats. Crowds have gathered to protest the killing of Alex Pretti and to condemn what they describe as a pattern of dehumanizing conduct by ICE, turning Park City into an unlikely backdrop for chants and handmade signs. Those demonstrations have drawn in a mix of locals, activists, and visiting talent, with Olivia Wilde and emerging as two of the most visible Hollywood figures to connect the killing of Alex Pretti to a broader call for solidarity and resistance.
Portman, Wilde and a star‑driven rebuke of ICE
Natalie Portman has long been selective about when she wades into public controversy, which made her decision to condemn ICE at Sundance land with particular force. Speaking against the backdrop of the festival, she cast the killing of protester Alex Pretti as part of a larger pattern of cruelty, arguing that what is at stake is not abstract policy but the value placed on human life. Her remarks slotted into a wider wave of frustration from the creative community, with Natalie Portman, Olivia becoming shorthand for a moment when the festival’s most bankable names chose confrontation over caution and aligned themselves with protest rather than polite neutrality.
Olivia Wilde, who has increasingly used her platform to talk about labor and social justice, matched Portman’s urgency with her own pointed critique. In an interview with Variety the actress did not hide her disgust, saying that everyone at Sundance was there to celebrate something joyful while, in her words, ICE was engaged in conduct that betrayed basic humanity. Wilde echoed Portman’s insistence that the industry cannot look away, arguing that the only responsible response is to show up for one another and fight against injustice, a sentiment captured in Wilde, echoing that as she linked the festival’s celebratory mood to a duty to confront what is happening beyond the premieres.
From Elijah Wood to Trump’s backing, the politics around ICE harden
The outrage at Sundance is not limited to two high profile actors. Lord of the Rings veteran Elijah Wood joined the protests in Park City and did not mince words, describing ICE’s conduct as “the worst of humanity” and insisting that what is happening in the streets is the opposite of what the country should be doing. His presence, alongside other performers and filmmakers, signaled that the anger is not confined to a single ideological niche inside Hollywood, and his comments, reported from the scene, helped frame the protests as a moral stand rather than a fleeting publicity stunt, a point underscored when Elijah Wood was singled out among the figures making statements.
Outside the festival bubble, the political response has only deepened the divide. Much like the killing of Good, the killing of Alex Pretti has been legitimatized by Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem as “self‑defense,” a framing that infuriates protesters who see the shooting as an abuse of power rather than a justified act. That endorsement from the highest levels of government has turned the Sundance protests into a direct challenge to the current administration’s narrative, with Natalie Portman and Olivia Wilde effectively positioning themselves against Trump and Kristi Noem’s defense of ICE. For many in the crowds, that clash is the point, a visible reminder that culture and politics are colliding in real time, as captured in reporting on how Natalie Portman and have become symbols of a broader demand for accountability.
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