It Was Just an Accident Co-Writer Arrested in Iran

Academy Award–nominated screenwriter Mehdi Mahmoudian was arrested Saturday, January 31, in Tehran after signing a statement condemning the actions of Islamic Republic of Iran leader Ali Khamenei. Mahmoudian is nominated for Best Original Screenplay for Jafar Panahi’s It Was Just an Accident, and the film is also up for Best International Feature. Neon released a statement after Mahmoudian’s arrest, noting that two other signees against Khamenei (Vida Rabbani and Abdullah Momeni) were also arrested.

The statement was also signed by Panahi, The Seed of the Sacred Fig’s Mohammad Rasoulof, and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Narges Mohammadi. It condemns the Iranian government’s current violent crackdown against civil protesters. “The mass and systematic killing of citizens who bravely took to the streets to bring an end to an illegitimate regime constitutes an organized state crime against humanity,” it reads. “The use of live ammunition against civilians, the killing of tens of thousands, the arrest and persecution of tens of thousands more, the assault on the wounded, the obstruction of medical care, and the killing of injured protesters amount to nothing less than an assault on Iran’s national security and a betrayal of the country.”

“I met Mehdi Mahmoudian in prison,” Panahi said in a statement. “From the very first days, he stood out — not only because of his calm demeanor and kind conduct but also because of a rare sense of responsibility toward others. Whenever a new prisoner arrived, Mehdi would try to provide them with basic necessities and, more importantly, offer reassurance.” After being released from prison in 2023, Panahi sent a rough draft of It Was Just an Accident to Mahmoudian to refine the dialogue. “His nine years of imprisonment had given him direct, lived knowledge of the judicial system and prison life. Also, his extensive fieldwork in human rights had made him a reliable and authoritative source for consultation,” he said.

Panahi said he sent a text message to Mahmoudian at 4 a.m. after speaking on the phone earlier: “By noon the next day, there was no reply.” He finally got news of his friend’s arrest via BBC Persian. “Mehdi Mahmoudian is not just a human rights activist and a prisoner of conscience; he is a witness, a listener, and a rare moral presence,” Panahi said, “a presence whose absence is immediately felt, both inside prison walls and beyond them.”