‘Appalling’: Mark Ruffalo denies antisemitism charge from Paramount Skydance over merger criticism

Key Points:

• Mark Ruffalo condemned Paramount Skydance's characterization of his anti-merger comments as antisemitic, calling the accusation “appalling and fundamentally dishonest,” and emphasizing that criticism of Israeli government actions is not equivalent to criticizing Jewish people.
• The controversy originated from Ruffalo sharing a post by the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement accusing Oracle of complicity in war crimes, which tied into Oracle's support for Israel's military after the October 7 Hamas attack.
• Ruffalo linked Oracle cofounder Larry Ellison's funding of his son David Ellison’s Paramount acquisition to the use of advanced military technology and warned that the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger could harm the film industry through job losses, higher costs, and reduced competition.
• Paramount responded by condemning the use of terms like “genocide” and “apartheid” in a business dispute, stating such language is inaccurate and diminishes the real suffering those words describe, while reaffirming a zero-tolerance policy for prejudice.
• Ruffalo has a history of criticizing Israel’s military actions, including acknowledging past missteps in language, and highlighted concerns over foreign influence and editorial freedom if the $111 billion media merger proceeds, which is currently under federal legal scrutiny.