All about Leonardo DiCaprio’s controversial hotel in Israel

Leonardo DiCaprio is currently attracting all sorts of acclaim for his leading turn in Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another. Yet it seems that the prolific Hollywood star is eyeing a different kind of success, in a different field altogether.

The prolific star is ready to become a hotelier and he has decided to start in Israel, investing a 10% stake in a property at Herzliya Marina Hotel.

Though the project has been described as an eco-friendly one, in keeping with DiCaprio’s environmentalist image, it faced swift backlash due to Israel’s occupation of Gaza and Palestine.

Luxury investment

DiCaprio’s hotel is supposed to be a 51,000-square-meter project, a beachfront property in Herzliya, situated along the central coast of Israel. Comprising 14 floors, the resort will include 365 rooms and other luxury facilities such as a large swimming area, multiple restaurants, and a yacht marina. DiCaprio’s financing partners in the investment are Hagag Group, a real estate giant, and a multi-millionaire brothers duo, Ahikam and Lior Cohen.

Complex had reported in July, “The partnership for the luxury hotel was announced in 2018. The project was then approved for deposit 6 years later, and has now received the final approval to move forward.”

Response

Soon after the news broke, before the latest ceasefire, DiCaprio’s move was severely derided across social media.

While many pointed towards Israel’s brutal campaign in Gaza, others were also observant of the country’s environmental atrocities and identified DiCaprio’s hypocrisy in partnering with entities related to it, given his staunch ecological stance and the many initiatives he undertakes due to that.

Per Euronews, “DiCaprio has previously been involved in several projects in Israel, including investments in Mobli, a social media startup, and Aleph Farms, a farmed meat company.”

The publication also made a point to report that Leonardo DiCaprio is “currently a United Nations Messenger for Peace.”