NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Several artists pulled out of an international festival in Portugal headlined by comedian Jerry Seinfeld, some citing concerns related to the Israel-Gaza conflict and others giving no public explanation. The withdrawals come ahead of the inaugural MEO Commedia a La Carte Fest in Lisbon, scheduled for October 29 to November 1. While some artists left the lineup without a public explanation, others cited political differences with the artists involved in the festival. On Saturday, actress Inês Aires Pereira announced on Instagram that she was removing her show Namaste from the festival’s lineup. In one image, Pereira wrote in Portuguese that “one of the names persistently defends ideas and acts that I consider indefensible. We cannot minimize or normalize a genocide,” according to a translation by The Hollywood Reporter. COMEDIAN DECLARES HUGH LAURIE ‘CAN’T BE CANCELED’ AS ACTOR COMES TO SOPHIE CUNNINGHAM’S DEFENSE Comedian Jerry Seinfeld performs during the 18th Annual Stand Up for Heroes Benefit at David Geffen Hall on November 11, 2024 in New York City. (Valerie Terranova/Getty Images for Bob Woodruff Foundation) Musical comedy duo Cebola Mol also addressed their outing on Instagram, writing in a translated caption: “We will celebrate justice, freedom and joy with you another time.” The post included a cartoon of a watermelon, which is widely used as a symbol of Palestinian solidarity. Several acts who left did not reveal their reasons. High-profile artists, including pop music project Tributo Pop, comedian Pedro Tochas, group Conjunto Cuca Monga and visual artist Vhils, withdrew from the festival lineup without publicly stating a reason. MICHAEL RAPAPORT BLAMES ‘CLOWN’ MACKLEMORE FOR ANTI-ISRAELISTIC PERFORMANCE Seinfeld is the festival’s headliner and has publicly supported Israel. The festival’s website still lists him as an artist. His support for Israel during the conflict has drawn praise but also fierce criticism. In June, while leaving a New York Knicks game at Madison Square Garden, Seinfeld told a streamer calling for a “Free Palestine” chant that “doesn’t exist.” Protesters gather outside the Paramount Theater before a benefit performance by comedian Jerry Seinfeld on January 18, 2026 in Aurora, Illinois. Protesters called for a boycott over Seinfeld’s support for Israel amid the conflict in Gaza. (Jacek Boczarski/Anadolu via Getty Images) During an event at Duke University, Seinfeld also spoke about the pro-Palestinian protests, saying: “Free Palestine is, to me, fair… you’re free to say you don’t like Jews. Just say you don’t like Jews.” “You’re not admitting what you really think,” he continued. “So actually, compared to the Ku Klux Klan, I think the Klan is a little better here because they can directly say, ‘We don’t like black people, we don’t like Jews.’ Okay, that’s honest.” Fox News Digital reached out to the Seinfeld team but did not receive a response. Michael Richards, from left, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jerry Seinfeld and Jason Alexander pose with the Emmy Awards in the press room at the 45th Primetime Emmy Awards on September 19, 1993 in Pasadena, California (Vinnie Zuffante/Getty Images). Comedian and media analyst Tim Young argued that the withdrawals hurt the departing artists much more than they did Seinfeld, whom he called “uncancellable.” “I think anyone who’s a comedian, anyone who’s an actor, would want to work with basically the most successful comedian, if not one of the most successful comedians in world history right now. The guy is a multi-millionaire for his comedy and his writing, and I don’t know why you would want to walk away from him,” he added. Young suggested that the withdrawals were simply catering to their existing fan base, calling. the “a group of woke people performing for woke people” movement. Comedian Jerry Seinfeld attended the Los Angeles premiere of Netflix’s “Unfrosted” at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood on April 30, 2024, in Los Angeles, California. (Amy Sussman/Getty Images) “They know who their audience is, they’re behaving the way their audience would behave, and they’re just playing with it,” he said, adding that artists are likely to get more publicity for retiring than for performing. The retirements will have a lasting impact on Seinfeld’s standing in the comedy world. BILL MAHER SAYS IT’S ‘SO STUPID’ FOR ANTI-TRUMP ARTISTS TO LEAVE KENNEDY CENTER PERFORMANCES “You can’t cancel someone like him,” Young said. “Comedy can’t be cancelled, you get to a certain level, it won’t affect you, and it’s important that people like Seinfeld… come out and say, ‘Hey, you know, this is bad, the things that are happening.'” Comedian Jerry Seinfeld performs during the 10th annual Stand Up for Heroes show at the Theater at Madison Square Garden on November 1, 2016, in New York City. (Gary Gershoff/WireImage) CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP “Adults can’t be adults anymore. Everyone has to complain and cry. They will sacrifice their own success for a stupid stance,” Young added. Madison Colombo is a writer on Fox News Digital’s Flash, Media and Culture team, covering daily breaking news and current affairs with an award-winning background in broadcast and digital journalism.
