Over 180 Jewish figures rally behind Mark Ruffalo amid antisemitism accusations
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More than 180 prominent Jewish artists, scholars and entertainment industry figures have signed an open letter defending actor Mark Ruffalo after Paramount Skydance accused him of invoking antisemitic tropes.
The controversy followed Ruffalo’s criticism of Paramount Skydance’s proposed $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. Ruffalo linked his concerns about the deal to the business interests of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and the company’s technology contracts with the ‘Israeli’ military.
Ruffalo had shared a post criticizing Oracle’s involvement in military technology during the war in Gaza. He argued that the proposed media consolidation could threaten creative freedom and competition while raising concerns over the influence of the Ellison family.
Read more: Mark Ruffalo rejects Paramount’s 'antisemitic' accusation
Paramount Skydance responded by condemning Ruffalo’s comments, arguing that bringing anti-Zionism and Gaza into discussions of the corporate deal invoked harmful antisemitic tropes involving Jewish executives.
Ruffalo rejected the accusation, saying that criticism of the ‘Israeli’ prime minister, military technology contracts or executives involved in supplying such technology should not be equated with criticism of Jewish people.
Support for Ruffalo
In their open letter, the more than 180 signatories rejected what they described as the “weaponization” of antisemitism allegations to silence political and corporate criticism.
The letter also raised concerns about increasing media consolidation, warning that the proposed deal could expand the influence of wealthy individuals over US media while increasing the reach of surveillance and artificial intelligence technologies.
Among the signatories were actors Joaquin Phoenix and Wallace Shawn, director Jonathan Glazer, screenwriter Tony Kushner and author Naomi Klein.
The dispute has highlighted wider divisions in Hollywood over media consolidation, free speech, allegations of antisemitism and criticism of ‘Israel’ amid the war in Gaza.
