Let’s say you’re a comedian in Portugal gearing up for Lisbon’s first international comedy festival this fall.
You’re cautiously optimistic. Then you hear the news: Jerry Seinfeld — one of the most successful stand-up comics of all time — has agreed to perform. He’s never even performed in Portugal before. Suddenly, the event has a global star, and the Lisbon comedy scene has a chance to draw some serious international attention.
‘I don’t care about Palestine.’
So what do you do?
Apparently, you quit.
That’s what a growing number of local performers are doing after the MEO Commedia a La Carte Fest announced Seinfeld as the headliner of its inaugural show, running Oct. 29 through Nov. 1.
The Lisbon festival prominently features Seinfeld on its website and bills his November 1 appearance at the roughly 20,000-seat MEO Arena as his first performance in Portugal.
But what should have been a landmark booking for the new festival has instead prompted an exodus. At least six performers have pulled out, with several citing or alluding to Seinfeld’s support for Israel.
Portuguese comedian Inês Aires Pereira announced her withdrawal by declaring, “We cannot relativize or normalize a genocide.”
Pereira did not name Seinfeld directly but said one of the festival’s performers “insistently defends indefensible ideas and actions,” according to the Telegraph.
Comedy duo Cebola Mol also pulled out, posting an image of a watermelon — widely used as a symbol of Palestinian solidarity — and telling fans, “We will celebrate justice, freedom, and joy at a future opportunity, together with you.”
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Jerusalem, 2007. Moshe Milner/GPO/Getty Images
At least three other acts have withdrawn without publicly explaining their decisions.
Landing Seinfeld was reportedly two years in the making, and organizers are now considering legal action against performers who backed out, according to Portuguese outlet NiT. The outlet reported that the cancellations began after Seinfeld’s public support for Israel became a subject of discussion among the performers.
Another Portuguese outlet, MAGG, reported that organizers have even considered scrapping the rest of the festival and proceeding with Seinfeld’s performance alone.
César Mourão, a founding member of the group behind the festival, has said that bringing Seinfeld to Portugal was one of the project’s major goals from the beginning.
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NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal/Getty Images
Seinfeld has been publicly supportive of Israel since the Oct. 7 attacks. In December 2023, he traveled to Israel and met with families of hostages taken by Hamas.
He has been considerably less diplomatic when confronted by pro-Palestinian hecklers.
While posing for a video with a fan in 2025, Seinfeld was met with a call to “free Palestine.”
“I don’t care about Palestine,” Seinfeld replied.
During a 2024 performance in Australia, Seinfeld similarly mocked a heckler who interrupted his set with pro-Palestinian remarks.
“We have a genius, ladies and gentlemen,” Seinfeld told the crowd. “He solved the Middle East.”
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