Filmmaker Lexi Alexander, known for directing "Green Street Hooligans," has drawn widespread criticism for a social media post that appeared to celebrate the death of a young executive and mother who was fatally stabbed in Times Square.
Alexander, who received an Academy Award nomination in 2003 for a short film, shared an image on Tuesday depicting Batman with the bat signal replaced by the face of Luigi Mangione, a figure associated with a past CEO killing. The post was made in response to a message identifying the victim as Erin Piacenti, a vice president at Bank of America.
Piacenti, 32, was killed Monday afternoon in what authorities described as a random and unprovoked attack. She was stabbed in the abdomen with a kitchen knife by Pamela Cisneros, 49, who then proceeded to stab another man before being shot and killed by police. Piacenti had recently returned to work after a five-month maternity leave and had celebrated her second wedding anniversary the previous month.
In comments on her post, Alexander also alleged that Israeli "bots" were active, similar to a previous instance where she called for a boycott of Bank of America. She shared a link to a January article discussing the bank's recommendation to invest in Israeli banks, stating that "Israel doesn’t care about the woman who got killed, they care about the positive rating BofA gave them in the middle of a genocide. There is huge money at stake." The post garnered significant attention, with many users condemning Alexander's reaction to Piacenti's death.
A spokesperson for Bank of America issued a statement expressing shock and sadness over the loss of their colleague, calling Piacenti a "valued teammate who will be greatly missed."
Alexander, 52, born in Germany, has a background as a world kickboxing champion and stuntwoman before moving into filmmaking. She has been an vocal critic of Israel's actions in Gaza since the conflict with Hamas began in October 2023.
Alexander's representatives did not immediately respond to requests for comment.