Ruffalo Vows to Keep Fighting Paramount-Warner Bros. Deal After California AG Settles Lawsuit

Actor Mark Ruffalo says he isn’t done opposing the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger, even after California Attorney General Rob Bonta settled his lawsuit against the deal and the merger appears cleared to close.

Ruffalo, who has opposed the merger since it was first proposed, posted on Threads this week arguing the combination of the two studios will harm workers and limit creative output.

“This merger will stifle creativity, weaken free speech, and cost people their jobs — it is a bad deal for this country and should never have been approved,” Ruffalo wrote. “This is an incredibly disappointing outcome for the hundreds of thousands of us who stood up to block it, but it’s also not the end. This grassroots movement isn’t going to fade away and neither is our resolve.”

“This was never about just one merger: this was about fighting back against corrupt oligarch billionaires trampling the interests of everyday people to line their own pockets. We’re still in that fight. Join us,” he added.

The merger fight has also become entangled with a separate, more personal dispute. Paramount CEO David Ellison accused Ruffalo of antisemitism after the actor said Ellison and his father, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, were complicit in what Ruffalo called “genocide” against Palestinians, citing their support for Israel.

Ruffalo rejected the accusation in strong terms.

“The accusation that I am antisemitic is appalling and fundamentally dishonest,” Ruffalo said. “Criticizing the actions of the Israeli prime minister, a military technology contract or the executives who supply it is not the same as criticizing Jewish people. This critical and necessary dialogue is then dishonestly framed as being anti-Israel.”

“To be clear, my views come from my own political convictions and should never be interpreted as hostility toward Jewish people, for whom I have deep love and respect,” he added. “Everything I know about acting, activism and humanism has been profoundly shaped by the Jewish friends, colleagues and loved ones who have been integral and family throughout every point of my life.”