SAN SEBASTIÁN: American actress Angelina Jolie stated she no longer recognises her own country while expressing deep concerns about threats to free expression.
She made these remarks during a presentation of her latest film at Spain’s San Sebastián film festival on Sunday.
Jolie’s comments emerge amid growing worries about free speech in the United States following President Donald Trump’s crackdown on critical media.
The recent suspension of late-night host Jimmy Kimmel’s show over comments about conservative influencer Charlie Kirk’s killing has intensified these concerns.
“I love my country, but I don’t at this time recognise my country,“ Jolie said when questioned about fears for freedom of speech in the United States.
“Anything, anywhere, that divides or, of course, limits personal expressions and freedoms and, from anyone, I think is very dangerous,“ she added.
“These are very, very heavy times we’re all living in together.”
Jolie visited San Sebastian to promote “Couture,“ directed by French filmmaker Alice Winocour, which competes for the festival’s top prize, the Golden Shell.
She portrays Maxine Walker, an American film director facing divorce and serious illness while navigating Paris Fashion Week.
Her character embarks on a romance with a colleague played by French actor Louis Garrel throughout the film.
The Oscar-winning actress, honoured in 1999 for “Girl, Interrupted,“ stated she related personally to her latest character’s struggles.
Jolie underwent a double mastectomy in 2013 and later had her ovaries and fallopian tubes removed to reduce her high genetic cancer risk.
Cancer claimed the lives of both her mother and grandmother, making her medical decisions deeply personal.
Visibly moved, she revealed she often thought of her mother while making the film.
“I wish she was able to speak more as openly as I have been, and have people respond as graciously as you have, and not feel as alone,“ Jolie said.
“There’s something very particular to women’s cancers, because obviously it affects us, you know, how we feel as women,“ she added. – AFP
