Overview
- Ruffalo criticized the proposed Paramount–Warner Bros. Discovery deal on Aug. 21, posting that David and Larry Ellison and Oracle were linked to Israeli military technology and calling Israel’s actions in Gaza a “genocide.”
- Paramount responded soon after with a public statement saying Ruffalo had invoked “antisemitic tropes,” a charge the company has not retracted and that provoked condemnation from some Jewish organizations and an industry coalition.
- An open letter published Sept. 1 and signed by more than 170 Jewish artists, filmmakers and public figures defended Ruffalo as the target of an “outrageous smear campaign” and argued that criticizing corporate ties to Israel is not antisemitic.
- The episode has split Hollywood and Jewish institutions, with high‑profile signatories such as Joel Coen and Todd Haynes backing Ruffalo while groups including the Simon Wiesenthal Center and the ADL supported Paramount’s characterization.
- The dispute centers on Oracle’s reported work with Israeli security agencies and raises practical stakes for the paused $110–111 billion merger, which remains under multistate antitrust challenge and continues to attract public and regulatory scrutiny.