Since “Captain America: Brave New World” was announced with Israeli actress Shira Haas portraying Israeli superhero Sabra, there has been significant outcry against the character’s inclusion and her identity.
The character, a former Mossad agent born on a kibbutz, is known for her anti-gravity cape, bulletproof skin, and the ability to heal others. She is also known as being one of the most controversial characters in the MCU.
Sabra, actually named Ruth Bat-Seraph, was featured in the teaser trailer of the new film. However, many fans were upset to see that her connections to the Mossad have been removed.
Read more: How Jewish creators shaped the comic book industry
Critics of the change claim that Marvel and its parent company Disney have succumbed to anti-Israel sentiment by altering the character.
Jewish Gen Z Marvel fans are divided on the issue. Some argue that making the character Israeli would give anti-Israel activists another reason to boycott a product with a Jewish actress, while others believe the decision targets Israelis in a way that other nationalities have not been.
Sabra’s controversial history
Marvel faced heavy criticism after casting the “Unorthodox” actress was announced. Palestinians criticized the company for making the announcement just days before the 40th anniversary of the 1982 Sabra and Shatila massacre. The hashtag #CaptainApartheid trended on social media, with many condemning the inclusion of Sabra in the film for promoting not only Israeli intelligence agencies but also the State of Israel as a whole.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, one consistent message spreading on social media stated “the character’s backstory includes working for the genocidal Israeli government and its occupation forces. By reviving this racist character in any form, Marvel is promoting Israel’s oppression of Palestinians.”
The Sabra and Shatila massacre involved the horrific slaughter of hundreds of Palestinian and Lebanese Shia Muslims by a Christian militia at a Beirut refugee camp, while Israeli troops stood by. Anti-Zionists argued that Marvel’s move was insensitive and focused on a character criticized by both Palestinians and Israelis.
The superhero Sabra, introduced two years before the massacre, was named after the moniker for native Israelis, derived from the Hebrew word for a prickly pear cactus. Since her first appearance in 1980, reactions to the character have been mixed, with many, including pro-Israel advocates and Israelis, calling her appearances divisive and racist.
Sabra fights villains depicted as Arab caricatures and, more often than not, almost exclusively as terrorists. The comics featuring her have been accused of oversimplifying the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and stereotyping both Israelis and Arabs through characters like Sabra and Arabian Knight.
What are the changes being made to Sabra?
Marvel announced it would take a “new approach” to the character of Sabra but did not reveal details, especially in light of the Israel-Hamas war.
“While our characters and stories are inspired by the comics, they are always freshly imagined for the screen and today’s audience, and the filmmakers are taking a new approach with the character Sabra who was first introduced in the comics over 40 years ago,” the company said in a statement at the time.
Read more: Is Spider-Man Jewish? The answer for him and creator Stan Lee is complicated
The teaser trailer featured Haas, but she was not in Sabra’s white-and-blue-spangled uniform, instead wearing a simple black suit.
In a breakdown of the clip distributed by Marvel, the production studio stated that Haas “joins as Ruth Bat-Seraph. A former Black Widow, Ruth is now a high-ranking U.S. government official.”
This synopsis caused an online firestorm as there was no mention of the superheroine’s Israeli identity, work with the Mossad, or even the name “Sabra.” Many comic aficionados believe that Marvel will give the character more of a Russian identity, similar to Jewish actress Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow. The group of female assassins in the canon is sponsored by the Russian government.
The American Jewish Committee wrote on X that Marvel’s “decision to strip the Israeli identity of Sabra is a betrayal of the character’s creators and fans and a capitulation to intimidation. Sabra is a proud Israeli hero, and should be portrayed as such. Taking away such a central part of her identity would be like making Captain America Canadian.”
While a Hollywood Reporter article said that Bat-Seraph will not be called Sabra in the movie, she will be Israeli. A report from The Wrap also confirmed that Bat-Seraph would be Israeli but without the codename Sabra or any Mossad ties. However, what the character’s Israeli identity looks like will likely not be seen until the film is released Feb. 14, 2025.
Many members of Jewish Gen Z think the decision was for the best
Rebecca, 19, a self-proclaimed “comic book nerd” said she was relieved by Marvel’s decision.
“I love any kind of Jewish [representation] but at this time it would receive too much negative attention and it’d ruin the experience. It’ll be what happened to Gal Gadot for ‘Wonder Woman’ but like tenfold,” Rebecca said.
“Wonder Woman,” which starred Israeli actress Gal Gadot, was widely boycotted by anti-Israel activists and even banned in Lebanon because of Gadot’s service in the IDF. Many, including former adult actress and notable anti-Zionist Mia Khalifa have referred to Gadot — who served as a fitness instructor in the IDF — as “genocide Barbie.”
Many other fans agreed that an Israeli character in such a high-profile film would put undue attention on Israel and expose Haas to even more vitriol than she has as an Israeli in the public sphere. Others believe that the character is simply a bad look for Israelis due to her outdated storylines.
“Straight up, Sabra is horrible Israeli representation. We are not all warmongering and hate Arabs. She is horrible to innocent Arab citizens in the comics. Why would that be the character we want representing Israelis when we are trying to show the world that we just want peace and coexistence,” Israeli-American comic book fan Tomer, 24, said.
“I think it’s the correct move for Marvel in the current political environment. We don’t need more public Jew hate,” Noah, 24, agreed.
Read more: Is Superman Jewish? Here’s why it matters
Noah, who is a fan of the Marvel movies but didn’t know much about Sabra or comic books before he read about the changes to the character, argued that it might be good for an openly Jewish Sabra that isn’t attached to Israel’s “political baggage.”
However, many of the calls to boycott the upcoming film come from Haas’ involvement, not the character’s Israeli origins.
Some Gen Z Jews feel that the decision was openly antisemitic and anti-Israel
For many young Jews, they said the decision was representative of a larger trend to eliminate Israeli voices in media. Some referenced efforts to mass report Israeli and pro-Israel celebrities in an attempt to remove them from social media. Others cited recent events in “nerd world” to exclude pro-Israel fans like a no-Zionist rule at the CRIT Awards for tabletop gaming and the banning of Israeli-Canadian comic book writer Miriam Libicki from the Vancouver Comic Arts Festival for her previous IDF service.
Many Marvel fans were upset about the company’s claim of always wanting to change Sabra’s story, arguing that there are seemingly other ways to rewrite the character while maintaining elements of her identity.
“If they’re saying they’re going to rewrite the character, why can’t they just change the problematic parts of her and still keep her Israeli?” asked Dan, a 21-year-old lifelong comics fan.
He added that historically, characters like Captain America and the Silver Samurai who represent countries with their costumes, always bring up criticisms of a nation’s culture and history. Dan wondered why this would change when it came to Israel and Sabra, saying that a nuanced depiction of Israel could educate a lot of viewers.
“Why use a political character and remove everything political about her?” he added. “It’s not because the character isn’t ‘good’ Israeli representation. It’s simply because she’s Israeli. It’s obviously for the money and the ratings. Disney doesn’t want a left-wing BDS boycott after right-wingers boycotted them for LGBTQ content. Pretty simple.”
Tali, 22, was specifically upset over Sabra’s new association with Russia, which she feels is more politically divisive because of the war in Ukraine.
While she noted that there are many Russian Israelis and the film could be combining those identities, she said that Marvel and Disney should not be portraying Russian spies if they refuse to do the same with Israeli spies.
“Making her Russian was apparently deemed somehow less offensive and political than her being a Mossad agent. Marvel wants to ignore war crimes and illegal annexation to avoid anti-Israel activists not showing up to the movies,” she said.
Originally Published Jul 18, 2024 12:42PM EDT
