Mark Ruffalo links Paramount-Warner Bros. merger to Oracle’s technology work with Israel

Actor Mark Ruffalo criticized the Ellison family and the planned Paramount-Warner Bros. merger, linking it to Oracle's technological assistance to Israel after October 7. Paramount responded, accusing Ruffalo of using antisemitic imagery. Ruffalo has opposed the merger for months, citing job losses and oligarchic power.

Actor Mark Ruffalo, known for his role in the Avengers films, sparked controversy on Friday night by criticizing the Ellison family and the planned merger between Paramount and Warner Bros., linking the deal to Oracle's activities in Israel and the war in Gaza. In an Instagram post, Ruffalo shared a video of Safra Catz, vice chair of Oracle, discussing the technological assistance the company provided to Israel following the Hamas-led October 7 attack. Ruffalo described Oracle as a company that Larry Ellison uses to fund the purchase of Warner Brothers by his son David, and claimed its technologies will be merged into one of the largest media corporations and used against people. He referred to Catz's discussion as reveling in what he called genocide built on an apartheid system powered by Oracle. Paramount responded, accusing Ruffalo of using antisemitic imagery and stating that words like genocide and apartheid, when applied to a corporate transaction, are wrong and cheapen real suffering. Ruffalo has opposed the merger for months, arguing it would harm thousands of Hollywood workers and citing a report indicating the loss of approximately 4,500 direct jobs in Los Angeles's film and television industry.