Adam Brody, who plays a rabbi in the Netflix hit Nobody wants thatrecently weighed in on the war between Israel and Gaza — and now an actual rabbi who consulted on the series is responding to what he calls the actor’s “ignorant” comments.
“By your own admission, you are a relatively ignorant Jew, and your ignorance really showed itself the other day,” Rabbi Steve Leder said in a message to Brody shared on Instagram (below). “Here’s some technical advice: If you don’t know anything about something, you shouldn’t say anything about it.” Brody – whose other Jewish on-screen characters include Seth Cohen from The CO and Seth Morris in Fleishman is in trouble – once stated that he “barely received the bar mitzvah and took nothing away from it.” (Jews are both a religious and ethnic group.)
Leder is the former senior rabbi of the Wilshire Boulevard Temple in Los Angeles, the synagogue where Erin Foster, the creator of the hit Netflix series, converted to Judaism. He served as the technical advisor during the first season of the series, consulting with the cast and crew to ensure that Jewish representation, including Brody’s portrayal of a rabbi, was authentic.
“Everything in the show that is, for lack of a better way to put it, overtly Jewish — I did my best to make sure that it was done with authenticity and respect,” Leder told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Nobody wants that also filmed scenes on location at the Wilshire Boulevard temple.
In a recent GQ In his interview, Brody said of the war in Gaza: “Belittles me by thinking it’s a genocide. Demeans me by wanting a free Palestine.” He added: “It’s horrible that it took so much death and misery, but I feel like we’re reaching a breaking point that should have been reached some time ago.”
Brody added that “between COVID, Trump’s second term, Israel-Gaza, it really brought out different beliefs that I was unaware of and then discouraged me.”
Brody plays “sexy Rabbi” Noah in the romantic comedy, which returns with its third season on October 22. In the series, Noah falls in love with non-Jewish Joanne (Kristen Bell) as they overcome obstacles – religious and otherwise – in their relationship.
In his video, Rabbi Leder said: “Your statement the other day about a ‘genocide in Gaza’ was truly shocking. Not only because of your misuse and misinterpretation of your use of genocide – there is no genocide in Gaza, there are genocides in other countries, but you didn’t mention any of them… if you’re going to use a word like genocide, you better know what that means. And by the way, be so being flippant about the term genocide – ‘hey, put me down for genocide’, like you’re asking for a table for two at (Los Angeles hotspot) Craig’s – is disgusting.
Leder resigned from the WBT in 2024 after 37 years at the synagogue, a pillar of Jewish Hollywood established in 1929 with the financial backing of early moguls including Louis B. Mayer, Carl Laemmle, Irving Thalberg and brothers Jack and Harry Warner. During his tenure at the chair, he oversaw a $150 million renovation of the historic WBT building, supported by a membership base that included a who’s who of today’s entertainment industry.
Leder is a prominent voice in American Jewish affairs, authoring books and appearing regularly as a guest on national news programs. A sermon he wrote on capital punishment was included in an episode of The west wing titled “Take This Sabbath Day.” (It’s no coincidence that he officiated showrunner Aaron Sorkin’s wedding.)
In the comments section of his Instagram post, Leder also defended Foster, saying “Erin’s personal views are clear,” likely referring to comments favorable to Israel since the October 7, 2023 massacre that preceded the current conflict in Gaza. “She’s also a true professional who won’t allow this to spoil her great work on the show.” In fact, Foster previously said, “This is not a show to address the conflict in Israel and Palestine.”
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