The upcoming animated series Boxtown has confirmed it dumped star voice actor Tara Strong over her recent posts and comments on Israel and Palestine.
Boxtown and Bandit Mill Animation said in a statement Tuesday night that Strong, whose voice became famous on Teen Titans, Rugrats, The Powerpuff Girls, and Ben 10, was removed due to a “trend among Tara’s recent online activity, including posts that promote controversial messages regarding the peoples of Palestine currently being affected by the ongoing Israel-Palestine crisis.”
Last week, Boxtown had posted that it was recasting the role of Bill the Orphan, the character Strong voices, but offered no details. Strong posted afterward, saying she found out the news online. “Fired for being Jewish,” she wrote. “Please lose my email address & pray for my family in Israel and in Gaza.”
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As the crisis began to unfold Oct. 7, Strong reportedly liked a tweet that equated all Muslims to Hamas and ISIS, while in another post, she reportedly wrote, “they were smart to start with a country people love to hate.” Strong later claimed she “liked it when I saw ISIS=HAMAS,” but “I actually didn’t read the entire tweet which is AWFUL & unliked as SOON as I realized.” She added: “I love everyone… except terrorists. The internet is SO quick to peg people & make judgements. I’m still here to help everyone, & I mean that.”
In its statement, Boxtown appeared unconvinced. “We believe that our public platform gives us a duty to be careful when it comes to hateful messages and misinformation online. This extends to our cast and crew. This was not a difficult decision.”
More information about recasting, it added, will be announced in the weeks to come.
“Our hearts are with the Palestinian and Israeli children and families being affected by the ongoing conflict. People should be able to live freely without being threatened by constant abuse and terror. We are hoping for the best,” the show’s statement added.
