Mark Ruffalo and Paramount are clashing over the actor’s criticism of the proposed Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery merger. On Aug. 21, 2026, Paramount accused Ruffalo of invoking antisemitic tropes after he connected the deal to Oracle’s work with the Israeli military and condemned the Ellison family’s influence. Ruffalo shared a 2023 video featuring Paramount board member Safra Catz discussing technologies Oracle used to support Israel after the Oct. 7 attacks. In the post, Ruffalo called Larry Ellison a “classic oligarch” and argued that David Ellison’s push to combine Paramount with Warner Bros. Discovery could put too much power in one family’s hands. Why Did Paramount Push Back? A Paramount spokesperson said the company was “troubled” by language that allegedly applied terms such as “genocide” and “apartheid” to a corporate transaction. The statement argued that using those words in a merger fight diminishes the suffering associated with the Israel Hamas war, while insisting Paramount “does not tolerate prejudice of any kind.” Paramount also said the dispute should cool down rather than escalate, framing its position around inclusion, creative freedom, and opposition to blacklists. Ruffalo has been among the earliest Hollywood voices to criticize the proposed deal, but industry sources cited by Variety said his merger objections had become entangled with broader anti Israel rhetoric. The Oct. 7, 2023 attacks killed 1,195 Israelis and foreign nationals and resulted in 251 people being abducted, according to the figures included in the report.