Aaron Sorkin has dropped CAA over controversial social media posts regarding Israel from agent Maha Dakhil, Variety has confirmed.
The “Social Network” and “West Wing” writer is returning to WME, which he had been previously repped by until his move to CAA in 2017.
“Maha isn’t an antisemite, she’s just wrong. She’s a great agent and I’m very proud of the work we did together over the last six years. I’m excited to be returning to WME,” Sorkin said in a statement.
Dakhil, who represents A-list talent such as Tom Cruise and Natalie Portman, resigned from CAA’s internal board on Sunday following the controversial comments she made on Israel, as well as stepped away from her leadership duties as co-head of the agency’s motion pictures department. She will continue to work with her clients and CAA colleagues while spending time in her personal education process.
On Oct. 18, Dakhil reposted a statement from an account labeled Free Palestine, which weighed in on Israel’s response to the Oct. 7 terror attack executed by Hamas. The post read, “You’re currently learning who supports genocide,” to which Dakhil added her own caption: “That’s the line for me.” She then posted a second photo captioned, “What’s more heartbreaking than witnessing genocide? Witnessing the denial that genocide is happening.” She later deleted both posts from her account.
“I made a mistake with a repost in my Instagram story, which used hurtful language. Like so many of us, I have been reeling with heartbreak. I pride myself on being on the side of humanity and peace,” Dakhil told Variety in an Oct. 19 statement. “I’m so grateful to Jewish friends and colleagues who pointed out the implications and further educated me. I immediately took the repost down. I’m sorry for the pain I have caused.”