diff --git a/scripts/gan-harness.sh b/scripts/gan-harness.sh
index 79e081620..3b4164bec 100755
--- a/scripts/gan-harness.sh
+++ b/scripts/gan-harness.sh
@@ -154,6 +154,12 @@ case "$EVAL_MODE" in
 esac
 
 EVALUATOR_TOOLS=$(evaluator_tools_for_mode "$EVAL_MODE")
+EVALUATOR_OPTIONS=(--allowedTools "$EVALUATOR_TOOLS")
+if [ "$EVAL_MODE" != "playwright" ]; then
+  # Allow rules only pre-approve calls. Deny this server's tools explicitly
+  # in modes that inspect existing screenshots or source instead.
+  EVALUATOR_OPTIONS+=(--disallowedTools 'mcp__playwright__*')
+fi
 
 phase "GAN-STYLE HARNESS — Setup"
 
@@ -263,7 +269,7 @@ Update gan-harness/generator-state.md." \
   fi
 
   claude -p --model "$EVALUATOR_MODEL" \
-    --allowedTools "$EVALUATOR_TOOLS" \
+    "${EVALUATOR_OPTIONS[@]}" \
     "You are the Evaluator in a GAN-style harness. Read agents/gan-evaluator.md for full instructions.
 
 Iteration: $i
diff --git a/tests/gan-harness.test.js b/tests/gan-harness.test.js
index 7bc05cba5..b2a591212 100644
--- a/tests/gan-harness.test.js
+++ b/tests/gan-harness.test.js
@@ -383,6 +383,26 @@ const results = Object.freeze([
       assertEvaluatorTools(calls, baseTools);
     });
   })),
+
+  test('evaluator mode explicitly denies Playwright tools without changing other phases', () => {
+    for (const mode of ['playwright', 'screenshot', 'code-only']) {
+      withHarnessRun({ mode }, ({ result, calls }) => {
+        assert.strictEqual(result.status, 0, result.stderr);
+        const [evaluator] = evaluatorCalls(calls);
+        const denyIndex = evaluator.indexOf('--disallowedTools');
+        if (mode === 'playwright') {
+          assert.strictEqual(denyIndex, -1);
+        } else {
+          assert.ok(denyIndex >= 0, `${mode} must deny the configured Playwright server tools`);
+          assert.strictEqual(evaluator[denyIndex + 1], 'mcp__playwright__*');
+          assert.strictEqual(evaluator.filter(arg => arg === '--disallowedTools').length, 1);
+        }
+        for (const args of calls.filter(args => args[0] === '-p' && args !== evaluator)) {
+          assert.strictEqual(args.includes('--disallowedTools'), false);
+        }
+      });
+    }
+  }),
 ]);
 
 const passed = results.filter(Boolean).length;