In the midst of the growing controversy over the actions of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) of the United States under the administration of Donald Trump, the spanish actor Antonio Banderas has joined the critical voices with a particularly direct and visceral tone. In an interview with Cadena SER’s Hora 25 program, Banderas described the images that have circulated from Minnesota as deeply shocking, referring to the federal agency as “the gang of thugs that this man has invented”, in reference to the Republican president and the style of his immigration policies.
The renowned protagonist of the “Zorro” saga and one of the filmmaker’s favorite actors Pedro Almodovardid not skimp on words to define what he has seen about “scenes of elderly people taken from their homes, children handcuffed, and a use of force that caused him to “retch” and “nausea.” For José Dominguez, the interpreter’s real name, the violence unleashed by ICE operations is not only unjustifiable, but represents a broader symptom of the human rights crisis that, in his opinion, the United States is going through.
The actor’s criticism was not limited to the operational aspects but touched the heart of the politics that sustain it. Banderas questioned the use of firearms in situations that, in his opinion, do not merit it, specifically recalling the case of Alex Prettia man who, according to newspaper reports, was shot multiple times despite carrying no object other than a mobile phone.
Beyond interpreting the events in a purely police sense, the Spanish artist contributed a personal perspective by revealing that the tension generated by these immigration policies has even affected his family. According to him, his own daughter expressed fear of the possibility of being deported, having been born in Spain. This detail made clear the human dimension of the debate on immigration and the perception of insecurity that, in his opinion, the Trump administration’s policies generate.
Banderas’ position is part of a broader context of criticism from the world of entertainment and culture. Other public figures and artists have expressed their rejection of the raids and the US administration’s approach to immigration, calling the actions “inhumane” and calling for urgent change.
In this framework, Giancarlo Espositoknown for his role as Gus Fring in the series Breaking Bad, made strong statements on the subject to Variety from the Sundance Film Festival. The actor from Spike Lee’s film “Do the Right Thing” stated that “it’s time for a revolution” against the actions of ICE and the policies that support them, in a speech that used rhetoric in favor of civil resistance. In his words, quoted by the magazine, “we have to stand up against it, they can’t take us all down” and he stressed that “we will not be eliminated by ICE.”
Esposito also interpreted the events as part of a broader problem of systemic oppression, noting that “some very rich, old white men are exercising their power to suppress our own people,” creating a sense of “civil war” in the streets. These statements have been spread in a context of growing polarization and protests, in which Hollywood artists and activists continue to raise their voices against what they perceive as abuses and injustices in United States immigration policy.
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