Mark Ruffalo rejects Paramount’s criticism in Warner Bros merger dispute

Actor Mark Ruffalo has rejected Paramount Skydance’s accusation that his criticism of its planned $110.9 billion acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery invoked antisemitic tropes, escalating a public dispute over the deal and the companies backing it.

Ruffalo said criticism of Israeli government policy, military-technology contracts or executives supplying those systems should not be equated with hostility toward Jewish people. His response followed a Paramount statement saying it was troubled by what it described as antisemitic tropes being used in a business dispute.

The exchange began after Ruffalo highlighted Oracle’s long-standing technology work with Israeli institutions and the role of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison in supporting financing for the acquisition led by his son David Ellison’s Paramount Skydance. Ruffalo argued that the merger could reduce competition, cost jobs and concentrate control over major film, television and news assets.

The US Department of Justice approved the transaction in June 2026, but the deal remains paused while a federal judge considers an antitrust challenge brought by 12 states. Neither the allegations exchanged in the public dispute nor the wider political arguments determine the court’s assessment of the transaction.