# Wim Wenders Clarifies His Stance on Filmmakers’ Role in Politics After Berlin Controversy: ‘We Are the Opposite of Politicians … We Are the Antidote’

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/wim-wenders-clarifies-his-stance-on-filmmakers-role-in-politics-after-berlin-controversy-we-are-the-opposite-of-politicians-we-are-the-antidote/
- Published: 2026-09-06T17:01:04+00:00
- Updated: 2026-09-06T23:15:03+00:00
- Original publisher: Variety
- Original article: https://variety.com/2026/film/festivals/wim-wenders-clarifies-filmmakers-politics-berlin-1236853205/
- Topics: Entertainment, Film, Government, Politics

## Key points

- Wenders says Berlinale remarks on politics were misquoted, not a retraction
- He calls filmmakers "the antidote" to politics, driven by empathy
- Row forced Berlinale statement and Arundhati Roy's festival withdrawal in February

## Summary

Wim Wenders has moved to settle the controversy sparked by his remarks on filmmakers and politics, insisting at the Venice Film Festival that he was misquoted after his original comments caused a prolonged row at February's Berlin Film Festival. Speaking on Sunday while promoting his documentary "From Inside Out — The Architecture of Peter Zumthor," he said his real point was about mindset rather than avoidance: filmmakers work with empathy and seek to change things, unlike politicians, whom he described as operating without empathy and merely confirming the status quo, making filmmakers, in his words, "the antidote" to politics rather than people obliged to steer clear of it.

The row began at the Berlinale in February, where Wenders served as jury president and told the opening press conference that filmmakers "should stay out of politics," a remark that dominated the festival's press conferences as attendees were repeatedly pressed on the Gaza conflict and US immigration raids. Author Arundhati Roy withdrew from the festival in protest, and director Tricia Tuttle had to issue a statement addressing the backlash. At Venice, Wenders reiterated his original message while framing it more explicitly, and jury president Maggie Gyllenhaal separately argued that films are "fundamentally, undeniably political," rooting her view in cinema's capacity to foster empathy.

## Coverage

- [Variety: Wim Wenders Clarifies His Stance on Filmmakers’ Role in Politics After Berlin Controversy: ‘We Are the Opposite of Politicians … We Are the Antidote’](https://variety.com/2026/film/festivals/wim-wenders-clarifies-filmmakers-politics-berlin-1236853205/)
- [Deadline: Wim Wenders Revisits Berlin Comments On Filmmakers & Politics That Led To A Firestorm — Venice](https://deadline.com/2026/09/wim-wenders-revisits-berlin-comments-filmmakers-politics-1237069469/)

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.