Javier Bardem at the 2025 Emmy Awards. Photo: REUTERS/Daniel Cole

Oscar-winning Spanish actor Javier Bardem was honored on Wednesday with a hand and footprints ceremony at TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, California, and used his acceptance speech to again accuse Israel of allegedly committing a “genocide” in the Gaza Strip.

During his speech, the “F1” star praised his mother as “the most important person in my education” and said “the most important lesson I learned from her is to never give up your voice for the injustice and those who are not listened [to] often.”

“That’s why I keep denouncing the genocide in Gaza along with the brutal violence of the settlers in the West Bank,” he added. “They both are crimes that frame us all in this time and history.”

The “Old Country for Old Men” star then mentioned Rami Elhanan and Bassam Aramin, two fathers, Palestinian and Israeli, respectively, whose young daughters were killed at different times. Bardem said that like Elhanan and Aramin, be believes the world should “choose to build bridges rather than dig graves, because we have to remind ourselves that love is always, always, always stronger than hate.”

Elhanan and Aramin are close friends and co-directors of the Parents Circle Families Forum (PCFF), which supports Israeli and Palestinian bereaved families and promotes reconciliation, dialogue, and peace. Elhana’s 14-year-old daughter was killed by a suicide bomber in Jerusalem in 1997, while Aramin’s 10-year-old daughter was killed by a rubber bullet fired by Israeli border guards in 2007.

Bardem has repeatedly accused Israel of “genocide” and has been very public in his criticism of Israel’s military actions against Hamas terrorists, who started the Gaza war with their Oct. 7, 2023, invasion of and massacre across southern Israel.

At the 98th Academy Awards in May, Bardem also condemned the US-Israel war against Iran while talking to reporters on the red carpet and declared “Free Palestine” when presenting onstage. At the 77th Emmy Awards in September 2025, he wore a Palestinian keffiyeh around his neck and talked about his decision to boycott Israeli institutions and companies that “are not condemning the genocide in Gaza.”

In his acceptance speech on Wednesday, Bardem also spoke about the “humbling experience” of having his hand and footprints cemented at the TCL Chinese Theatre.

“It feels very special to be given a space like this to immortalize your name. When I think about the names that have stood on this very spot, it’s hard for me to believe that it’s real,” he said. “It’s safe to assume that I certainly never imagined standing here at the historic TCL Chinese Theatre preparing to put my hands and feet in cement. It’s an honor to be part of this remarkable Hollywood tradition to be included amongst so many extraordinary artists who have left a lasting impact on our cinema.”

Bardem, who already has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, was praised on stage by directors Michael Mann and Denis Villeneuve at his hand and footprints ceremony. He has been married since 2010 to his “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” co-star Penelope Cruz and the couple share two children: Leo, 15, and Luna, 12.