A finished documentary about the rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, has been shelved in light of his recent antisemitic outbursts.
In a message issued Monday, MRC studio execs Modi Wiczyk, Asif Satchu, and Scott Tenley stated, “We cannot endorse any work that amplifies his platform.”
Ye was recently barred from posting on Twitter and Instagram due to anti-Semitic remarks that the social media platforms said breached their regulations. He has also claimed that enslavement was an option and referred to the COVID-19 vaccination as the “mark of the beast.” Earlier this month, Ye was chastised for wearing a “White Lives Matter” T-shirt to the Paris Fashion Week presentation of his current collection.
Wiczyk and Satchu are MRC Entertainment’s co-founders and co-CEOs. Tenley is the chief operating officer. According to Women’s Wear Daily, the decision to shelve the documentary comes only days after the French fashion house Balenciaga severed ties with Ye.
Wiczyk, Satchu, and Tenley delve into the history of antisemitism in their lengthy memo.
“Kanye is a music producer and sampler.” He sampled and remixed a legendary music that has charted for over 3000 years last week — the falsehood that Jews are evil and plot to rule the world for their own advantage. This song was performed acapella by the Pharaohs, Babylon, and Rome, went acoustic by The Spanish Inquisition and Russia’s Pale of Settlement, and was made electric by Hitler. Kanye has now contributed to its modernization,” they wrote.
CAA, Ye’s entertainment agency, has also dumped him. That announcement on Monday, as well as the cancelled project, comes after UTA CEO Jeremy Zimmer slammed Ye in a companywide memo condemning antisemitism. Ye was a client for a year before returning to CAA.
Others in Hollywood have decried antisemitism, including Ye’s estranged wife, Kim Kardashian, and other members of her family. On a Los Angeles overpass on Saturday, protesters unfurled a banner celebrating Ye.