Mark Ruffalo rebuts Paramount Skydance antisemitism claims over $111bn merger
The actor argues that scrutiny of Oracle CEO Larry Ellison’s role in the deal is a necessary business critique, not hostility towards Jewish people.
Actor Mark Ruffalo has issued a sharp rebuttal to Paramount Skydance, which accused him of invoking “antisemitic tropes” in his criticism of the company’s $111bn merger with Warner Bros Discovery. In a written statement released on Saturday, Ruffalo argued that highlighting the influence of Oracle CEO Larry Ellison in the deal was “dishonestly framed as being anti-Israel,” maintaining that his critique targets specific business and political actions rather than religious or ethnic groups.
The dispute centres on the $110.9bn transaction, which would combine two of the last five legacy Hollywood studios. Larry Ellison, worth an estimated $189bn, agreed to personally backstop $40.4bn in equity financing to help Paramount Skydance acquire Warner Bros Discovery. Ruffalo accused Ellison of using Oracle to fund his son David’s acquisition, noting that the technology company has supplied software to the Israel Defense Forces and other government bodies for decades.
Paramount had previously described Ruffalo’s use of terms like “genocide” and “apartheid” in a corporate context as a “bridge too far.” In its rare public response, the media company stated it was “troubled when antisemitic tropes are invoked in purported service of a business dispute,” arguing that such words cheapen the suffering they are meant to describe.
Ruffalo countered that his views stem from “political convictions” and expressed “deep love and respect” for his Jewish friends and colleagues. He shared a video of Oracle executive vice-chair Safra Catz describing technology provided to Israel as “really profoundly scary,” using this to argue that these technologies will be merged into a major media conglomerate.
The actor warned that the merger would hand one family control over CNN, HBO, and Warner Bros, backed by “foreign money” whose influence on editorial decisions has not been fully explained to the public. He urged followers to oppose the deal, which he described as “catastrophic” for the entertainment industry due to potential job losses and reduced competition.
Although the US Department of Justice approved the merger in June, it remains on hold while a federal judge considers an antitrust lawsuit from a coalition of 12 US states. If the deal does not close by 30 September, Paramount Skydance could incur fees of approximately $7m a day payable to Warner Bros shareholders.
