WME’s Brandt Joel met by Zoom with agents in the motion picture and talent departments to apologize for and clarify the comment that he posted and then removed from an unofficial WME WhatsApp group chat, a source with knowledge of the situation tells The Hollywood Reporter.
Joel found himself at the center of scandal on Sunday, when his incendiary text made headlines following news that Israel’s military said it has recovered the bodies of six hostages killed by Hamas militants in Gaza.
In an unofficial Jewish affinity group showing solidarity with Israel, WME’s Nancy Josephson and Katie Slater, among others, remarked on the tragedy of the murders. Per screenshots obtained by The Hollywood Reporter, Joel then texted in response to the news, “Screw the left kill all.” He deleted the message a few minutes later.
Joel told the group this week that he wanted to address what had happened, expressed remorse for what he had done, said he deeply regretted it and holds himself responsible. He said he did this in an emotional and irrational moment when he was heartbroken at the news about the hostages. When he realized he had crossed a line, he took it down.
Though his original brief message lacked clarity, Joel noted his text was directed at Hamas, the terrorist organization.
Joel apologized for a lack of judgment, said he had created a big distraction and put a target on the group. He added that he loves the company and his colleagues, according to the source, and said he’s going to seek out different viewpoints and get counseling to address his impulsive behavior.
In the aftermath of the text’s fallout, Mahershala Ali has been reassigned and may be leaving the agency. The agent also represents Justin Timberlake, Jason Momoa and Matthew McConaughey.
A source told THR last weekend that this wasn’t the first time Joel has sent divisive messages in the group chat, and shared a previous text where Joel had said WME had been “weak” on clients who had spoken out about the ongoing war in Gaza. “We have been weak every department has clients we should have fired and we didn’t and it shows we are weak and we have tolerated abhorrent behavior,” Joel texted, although it is unclear which clients he eas directly referring to and what behavior he deemed “abhorrent.”
Joel added, “This is all polyanna crap. Nobody took a stand on this chat that I’m aware of except Richard and addressed it. Thankfully there are very few outliers yet we have not fired one and it’s shameful.”
