“Jews Don’t Count,” a new documentary from British writer and comedian DavidBaddiel set to air on UK broadcaster Channel 4 next week, is an examination ofhow, particularly in progressive circles, there is a persistent sense thatJews aren’t entitled to the same protection and support as other minoritycommunities. That sense is predicated on the antisemitic belief that all Jewsare rich, successful and “dominate” industries such as Hollywood, if not thevery world order.
It’s symbolic of the catch-22 at the heart of the film that the succession ofJewish celebrities who appear within it to talk about their experiences ofantisemitism, such as David Schwimmer, Sarah Silverman, Stephen Fry andJonathan Safran Foer, may well end up further convincing antisemites that thevery premise of the documentary is unfounded.
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Baddiel, a comedian and writer, acknowledged that predicament at a pressscreening in London on Wednesday although he was ultimately sanguine about it.“I want [the documentary] not to just be seen by Jews,” he explained. “Onevery simple way of doing that, hopefully, is to have big names in it. It’s apragmatic decision.”
Despite the starry guest list, when variety asked whether there were anyJewish public figures who had declined to appear in the film, Baddiel replied“quite a lot.” Out of respect for their privacy, he didn’t reveal their namesbut said the list included “some quite prominent Jews who don’t want to bringtheir Jewishness to the fore and just don’t want to talk about this.”
“This” being the uncomfortable but important discussion about how anti-Semitism presents in the modern day. On the right, it has remained largelyunchanged from the time of the Nazi Party in Europe and the Ku Klux Klan inthe US But in recent years antisemitism has also, to the surprise of many (notleast Jews themselves), sprung up on the left and it’s here, as Baddieldemonstrates in the documentary, that it takes a more insidious form, firstlyby shrouding itself in terms that, while not explicitly discriminatory, serveto exclude Jews alone from supposedly inclusive spaces, and secondly bydeclining to engage when Jews are subject to the kind of treatment that wouldarouse outrage on behalf of other groups (for example, inauthentic casting).
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“Particularly over the last 20 years, with social media and all the rest ofit, I think there’s been an incredible focus on trying to right wrongs, a lotof which has been good,” Baddiel said during the Q&A. “But some of which hasbeen performative. And I think within the performative space, [in which]people [are] trying to make it clear that they are allies in a way that ismore about their sense of self than about actual allyship, Jews have nocurrency for them.”
The documentary is based on Baddiel’s non-fiction book of the same name butthe two are distinct projects. “The book is very personal piece of work,” heexplained during the Q&A. “It’s me talking about my own experience of thisparticular phenomenon. [In the documentary] I can go speak to other Jews, andthey can tell me whether or not they’ve experienced the same kind of thing. Itturns out that this is something which, as Sarah Silverman says, a lot of Jewshave been feeling for a long time, but maybe hasn’t been articulated before.”
“And I guess the other thing that the book can’t do is, you can feel thingslike the Colleyville incident, for example,” Baddiel continued, referring tothe hostage crisis that took place at the beginning of this year, in which ayoung British man held up a Texas synagogue at gunpoint. Convinced of Jews’power and influence, the hostage-taker selected the synagogue at random todemand that an unaffiliated (and bewildered) rabbi in New York order therelease of an inmate and alleged al-Qaeda operative from Fort Worth.
David Baddiel and Sarah Silverman in “Jews Don’t Count.”
The rabbi, Angela Buchdahl, also makes an appearance in “Jews Don’t Count.”“The way we’ve rendered it, you can feel what that’s like for [her] suddenlybeing cast as this ridiculous stereotype of Jewish power that she’s got fourpeople’s lives in her hands,” Baddiel said.
He also shows how Jewish schools in the UK participate in active shooterdrills, an exercise almost unheard of in Britain, connecting it with festeringanti-Semitism on all sides of the political divide.
Despite the sober subject matter, audiences may be surprised to find that“Jews Don’t Count” also has plenty of laughs (at one point Silverman proclaims“I love money!” before acknowledging this documentary probably isn’t the bestplace to say that out loud). “It’s part and parcel of a Jewish tradition thatwhen you talk about trouble and awful things, you also try and be funny aboutit,” Baddiel said.
The documentary also sees Baddiel, who came to fame as a comedian, grapplewith anti-Semitism in the industry. The film examines “Bo’ Selecta!,” aBritish sketch show from the early 2000s which saw comedian Leigh Francisdress up as a number of public figures including Black (and Jewish) musicianCraig David, for which Francis donned Blackface. Francis also caricaturedBaddiel in the show, portraying him with a hook nose, long curly sidelocks(which Baddiel has never worn) and thick accent. It was a portrayal a friendof Baddiel’s apparently found so appalling he suggested it constituted a hatecrime.
In 2020 Francis released a video apologizing for portraying Black celebritiesincluding David and Michael Jackson. Baddiel, however, did not receive anapology from Francis. “I don’t like calling out other comedians. We’recomedians and it’s weird to do that. But in this particular case, it’s such aclear example of the selective outrage in the sense that, as far as I’m aware,no one has ever drawn any attention to that [lack of apology],” Baddiel saidduring the Q&A. He also revealed that Francis had declined a request to appearin “Jews Don’t Count.”
During the Q&A, Baddiel also discussed Dave Chappelle’s SNL monologue about> Kanye West, which took place just a few days earlier. “I love Dave> Chappelle, he’s a brilliant comedian,” Baddiel said but added that he had> found the SNL monologue “weird.” “Dave Chappelle was basically saying,> ‘Look, Kanye is right. We can’t say out loud, but Kanye was right, because> look what’s happened to him,’” Baddiel said, referring to the many brands> that had cut ties with West following his litany of public antisemitic> comments, including a threat to “go death con 3 on Jewish people [sic].”
“There are consequences, like there are [in the case of] all other minorities,when people say racist or discriminatory things,” Baddiel said. “But withJews, those consequences seem to be indicative of Jewish power.”
One of the most powerful moments in “Jews Don’t Count” is when Baddiel tackleshis own racist caricature of Black British footballer Jason Lee during a ’90sBBC sketch show called “Fantasy Football League.” In the show Baddiel appearedin Blackface as Lee with a pineapple on his head while his co-host, FrankSkinner, played Lee’s manager.
Baddiel has apologized publicly a number of times for the sketch but had nevermet Lee in person. In the documentary, he appears as a guest on Lee’s podcast,“AbsoluteLee,” during which he apologizes again. The duo then have adiscussion of both racism and anti-Semitism. During the Q&A, Baddiel revealedthat, although it’s not shown in the doc, he apologized to Lee again beforeleaving the podcast studio. “I just went up to him again, and said, ‘I’msorry, again.’ And he just went, ‘It’s done now.’ And shook my hand.” Theexperience, Baddiel said, was difficult but one he was grateful for. “I’m veryglad I’ve done it.”
Ultimately “Jews Don’t Count” ends on a hopeful note. “I do think that thedial is shifting, I say that at the end of the film,” Baddiel said. “I thinkthings have definitely moved on from when I wrote the book. Hopefully, thefilm will make people just think about it.”
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