Edward Norton, Olivia Wilde and More Speak Out Against ICE at Sundance: “An Illegal Army Is Being Mounted Against U.S. Citizens”

As protests continue in Minneapolis after a Border Patrol agent shot and killed anti-ICE protester Alex Pretti, attendees of the Sundance Film Festival are speaking out against the lethal actions of law enforcement and the continued attacks on protesters.

Talent, including Olivia Wilde, Zoey Deutch and Natalie Portman, have been wearing “ICE Out” pins to festival premieres and events. “We’re all here getting to celebrate something really beautiful and hopeful in film storytelling. But the world is hurting right now, and this country is hurting. And it’s appalling,” Wilde said on the carpet to Variety before the Friday night premiere of her film The Invite.

Edward Norton, who is in Park City for Wilde’s dinner party-set movie, was at The Hollywood Reporter’s studio discussing the subject of small talk with his co-stars Wilde and Seth Rogen. “These days it’s: ’What are we gonna do about mass Gestapo shooting American citizens?,’ Norton said, acknowledging the difficulty of light conversation in light of current events. “We are sitting here talking about movies while an illegal army is being mounted against U.S. citizens.”

Ahead of the screening of his film zi, filmmaker Kogonada told the audience, ”I wanted to take a moment to acknowledge everything that is happening in Minnesota. I’m a believer in what [Roger] Ebert says that cinema is an empathizing machine. In the darkest time, you hope that art doesn’t feel indulgent but that it deepens our sense of humanity. I feel like more than ever it is important to do that to counter what is happening around the world.”

Speaking with Deadline, Portman offered, ”What’s going on in this country right now is absolutely horrific. What the federal government, Trump’s government, Kristi Noem, ICE — what they’re doing is really the worst of the worst of humanity. And then we have the best of humanity for the way people are showing up for each other.”

Earlier in the festival in Park City, a Congressman became the subject of a racially-charged assault. A man was arrested at the High West Saloon during a CAA party after he snuck into the private event and assaulted Florida Congressman Maxwell Frost, as well as an unidentified woman. The racially-charged scene began, according to sources, when the man in the restroom allegedly stated how proud he was to be “white” and then exited the restroom and punched a person of color, later revealed to be Frost.

Frost later posted on social media: “Last night, I was assaulted by a man at Sundance Festival who told me that Trump was going to deport me before he punched me in the face. He was heard screaming racist remarks as he drunkenly ran off. The individual was arrested and I am okay.”

In a statement about the incident the festival said, “The safety and security of our festival goers remains our chief concern, and our thoughts are with Congressman Frost and his continued well-being.”