More than 170 entertainment industry figures support Mark Ruffalo in dispute with Paramount
More than 170 Jewish entertainment industry figures have signed an open letter supporting American actor Mark Ruffalo. The authors called the accusations against him an outrageous smear campaign, CBC World reports.
Signatories include actress Hannah Einbinder, director Joel Coen and Canadian director Emma Seligman. The letter says accusations of antisemitism are being misused falsely and dangerously in response to Ruffalo’s statements about Paramount Skydance’s possible acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery and the connection of this deal to the war in Gaza.
The parties’ positions
Last month, Paramount said in a statement to TheWrap and other media outlets that Ruffalo used antisemitic tropes when criticizing the deal. The company also said that applying the terms “genocide” and “apartheid” to a corporate transaction is inappropriate.
Earlier, another letter signed by more than a thousand Jewish entertainment industry figures condemned the actor’s statements. Its authors claimed that Ruffalo singled out Jewish executives and used wording linked to longstanding antisemitic conspiracy theories.
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Ruffalo himself previously called the allegations of antisemitism outrageous and fundamentally unfair. According to him, the criticism concerned the actions of Israel’s prime minister, a military technology contract and the executives supplying it, rather than the Jewish people.
Criticism of Oracle and the deal
On August 21, Ruffalo published a series of Instagram posts criticizing the possible merger and Oracle’s activities connected to the Israeli military. The actor said that genocide is taking place in Gaza and called the potential combination a classic antitrust case. In his view, the deal could lead to job losses, higher consumer prices and reduced competition.
The potential acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery is valued at $110 billion. It was postponed until June 2027 following a lawsuit by 12 U.S. state attorneys general seeking to block the deal over concerns about restricting competition. The combined company would control, among other assets, the Harry Potter and DC franchises, as well as CNN.
Paramount Skydance said the states’ lawsuit distorts established antitrust law. The company believes the merger would instead create a stronger competitor to major streaming and technology platforms.
