Paramount Calls Ruffalo's Merger Criticism Antisemitic Without Citing Specifics; Actor Fires Back

Paramount accused Mark Ruffalo of invoking antisemitic tropes over his criticism of the $111 billion Paramount–Warner Bros. merger and the Ellison family, but did not specify which comments it deemed antisemitic, Variety reported on 22 August 2026. Ruffalo called the accusation "appalling and fundamentally dishonest," arguing that criticising a defence-tech contract or the executives who supply it is not the same as criticising Jewish people. The dispute lands amid regulatory scrutiny of the proposed deal.