Tehran Governor Warns Of Consequences For “Celebrities Who Fanned Flames” Of Iran Protests

deadline.com:

An Iranian government official has warned that action will be taken against celebrities who publicly show support for anti-government protests, sparked by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while in police custody.These demonstrations have garnered an unprecedented level of public support from a number of prominent figures in Iran’s cultural, media and sporting spheres, who previously have not openly commented on the political situation in their country.Mohsen Mansouri, governor of the province of Tehran, said the authorities would be dealing with “celebrities who fanned the flames of riots and with those who sign [lucrative] contracts with radio and television, but in a time of riots take a stand against security and order.”“Of course, we may not deal with some cases immediately due to material reasons, but without a doubt we will deal with them after a few days and at the right time,” he was reported as saying by state news agency IRNA.Over the weekend, Oscar-winning Iranian director Asghar Farhadi posted a video on his Instagram account asking the world to unite in solidarity of protestors.It was an uncharacteristic move by the director, who has moved freely in and out of Iran until now, is currently attending the Zurich Film Festival as president of the jury.Separately another group of Iranian cinema professionals penned an open letter decrying the actions of the authorities and voicing support for the protests.Signatories included filmmakers Ali Abbasi (Holy Spider), Shirin Neshat (Land Of Dreams) and Bahman Ghobadi (The Four Walls) and Holy Spider Cannes best actress winner Zar Amir Ebrahimi.Back in Iran, popular, award-winning actress Fatameh Motamed-Ayra defiantly took off her hijab at the high-profile funeral