The Tribeca Festival publicly condemned comments made on the red carpet of The Wedding Entertainer (The Tale of Moishe Badhan) this week, calling them "offensive and unacceptable" after a clip of the remarks spread widely on social media.
According to Variety, comedian Elon Gold and influencer Lizzy Savetsky made jokes about the rape of Palestinians during the film's premiere. In the footage, Gold noted that the film was shot in Israel. "I was only raped by two Israeli dogs," Gold tells Savetsky in the clip, who replies, "I thought they only raped Palestinians."
The festival issued a direct statement in response. "Sexual violence and human suffering should never be mocked or minimized. The comments do not reflect the Tribeca Festival's values, and we regret the hurt and offense they have caused."
The festival added that it had not been able to reach the filmmakers. A spokesperson for the film did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Gold stars in the film, which tells the story of a down-on-his-luck Hasidic Jewish comedian who must secure one last gig to raise $20,000 in order to pay for his daughter's wedding. The film was directed and co-written by Gidi Dar.
The Tribeca Festival is in its 25th year. It was originally founded following the September 11 attacks as a way to draw people back to lower Manhattan, and has since expanded to hold events across all five boroughs. This year's festival opened Wednesday with the premiere of a new documentary from Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson titled Earth, Wind & Fire (To Be Celestial vs That's the Weight of the World).
