More than 170 Jewish figures from entertainment, academia and other fields have signed a letter defending Mark Ruffalo against what they describe as a “smear campaign” and “false accusations of antisemitism” directed at the actor.
Signatories include Joel Coen, Todd Haynes, Ilana Glazer, Hannah Einbinder, James Schamus, Emma Seligman, Wallace Shawn and Tony Kushner, as well as Israeli creators Einat Weizman, Udi Aloni, Itamar Ziegler and Rachel Leah Jones.
Einat Weizman, Mark Ruffalo and Hannah Einbinder
(Photo: Jordan Strauss/Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, Rafi Deloya)
“We are Jewish artists, writers, creative professionals, religious leaders and thinkers, and we have a simple message to the world in response to the outrageous smear campaign against our admired colleague Mark Ruffalo: Enough!” the letter said.
The signatories argued that allegations of antisemitism were being improperly used against critics who draw a connection between the war in Gaza and political and economic developments in the United States. They said making such a connection was not antisemitic and described speaking out as part of their Jewish moral responsibility.
The letter comes after Ruffalo intensified his opposition to the roughly $111 billion deal under which David Ellison’s Paramount Skydance is set to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, expanding his criticism beyond concerns over layoffs and media consolidation to include his views on Israel and the war in Gaza.
In a post to his 20.5 million Instagram followers, Ruffalo shared a video featuring Safra Catz, the Holon-born former Oracle CEO who now serves as the company’s vice chair and sits on Paramount’s board. He accused the company of involvement in what he called an “apartheid system of oppression” and “genocide,” while describing Larry Ellison, whose wealth is financing his son’s acquisition, as a “classic oligarch.”
Paramount responded sharply, accusing Ruffalo of employing “purported antisemitic tropes in service of a business dispute.” The company said invoking terms such as “genocide” and “apartheid” in connection with a corporate transaction crossed a line.
Ruffalo rejected the accusation Saturday as “shocking and fundamentally dishonest.”
“Criticism of the actions of the prime minister of Israel, a military technology contract or the executives who provide it is not the same as criticism of Jews,” he said.
The new letter also argues that the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger should not be viewed solely as an ordinary corporate transaction, portraying it instead as part of what the signatories describe as a broader technology and media power project associated with Larry Ellison.
“Pointing out the connections between what is happening in Gaza and what is happening in Hollywood is the exact opposite of antisemitism,” the letter said. “For us, it is the very essence of Jewish moral responsibility.”
The signatories cited a Washington Post poll that found 61% of American Jews believe Israel has committed war crimes in Gaza, asking whether those respondents, too, should be branded antisemitic.
The dispute places Ruffalo’s long-standing criticism of Israel at the center of an increasingly contentious Hollywood battle over one of the entertainment industry’s largest proposed corporate transactions, with the argument now extending beyond media consolidation to questions of Gaza, antisemitism and the political influence of some of the technology industry’s wealthiest figures.