Gal Gadot has resumed work on her latest film after a wave of anti-Israel protests delayed production for several weeks.
Exclusive photographs from the London set of political thriller The Runner reveal the Israeli star was back in action amid tightened security on set and increased Metropolitan Police presence to deter activists.
The set, which moved from Camden to east London for a ‘secret day of filming’ to thwart protests, saw the actress filming a dramatic scene in which she was thrown out of the back of a moving ambulance while badly injured.
Her presence on set comes despite suggestions in June that Ms Gadot could boycott the capital after being left ‘scarred’ by persistent demonstrations by pro-Palestinian activists, which had left those working on the movie increasingly exasperated and set back the production schedule.
Several activists were arrested at a filming site in Westminster in June for attempting to disrupt the production, while others shared filming locations on social media.
Ms Gadot, 40, has been accused by protesters of ‘normalising war criminals’ because of her past support for her country of birth and mandatory service in the Israel Defence Forces.
Gal Gadot, pictured at a red carpet event in California in 2021, has resumed work on her latest film after a wave of anti-Israel protests delayed production for several weeks
An increased Metropolitan Police presence was seen at the London set of the upcoming political thriller The Runner after Ms Gadot returned to filming action
The Israeli film star was pictured running in black sports leggings and a blue zip-up top for the night-time shoot through the city’s streets
But these pictures show the Wonder Woman star is defying the activists by continuing to work on the film, which also stars Homeland’s Damian Lewis.
Ms Gadot plays a high-powered lawyer who is forced to race through London to save her abducted son while following cryptic commands from a mysterious caller.
Dressed in black sports leggings, trainers and a blue zip-up top for the night-time shoot, she was seen sweating and bloodied as she bent over to be sick for one scene.
But she was all smiles elsewhere on set, chatting and laughing with the production team and dressed in an ankle-length padded coat.
There was a noticeable police presence around the site, with uniformed officers and a police van parked nearby.
The increased security comes after insiders from the film were said to have become frustrated by what they saw as a lack of action by officers after the production was repeatedly besieged by protests over at least 20 days earlier this year.
One activist, circulating details of a filming location in Canary Wharf, east London, wrote on social media: ‘No to IDF soldiers in our city. No normalising war criminals!! Free Palestine.’
Ms Gadot, pictured with her Hollywood Walk of Fame star, has seen her attempts to film repeatedly besieged by protestors who have accused her of ‘normalising war criminals’
Protesters also held signs which read ‘Trash Gadot not welcome in London’ and ‘Stop starving Gaza’.
Disney assigned bodyguards to the actress earlier this year during the promotional campaign for the live-action remake of Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs, in which she starred as the Evil Queen, after she received death threats over her support for Israel.
Ms Gadot has not commented on the latest protests but the Campaign Against Antisemitism has warned they reflect a climate of hostility towards Jewish people in the UK.
Ms Gadot’s next project is Ruin, a thriller set in the aftermath of the Second World War in Germany, in which she stars as a recently released concentration camp prisoner who makes an unlikely alliance with a German soldier.
A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: ‘Protesters have repeatedly disrupted filming at locations across London, which has led to five arrests for various offences including harassment.
‘While we absolutely acknowledge the right to peaceful protests, we have a duty to intervene when this crosses the line into serious disruption or criminality.
‘Officers have been deployed where needed to ensure the safety of all those involved in the filming and those legitimately protesting.’
The Runner will be released in 2026.