Jewish artists defend Mark Ruffalo amid Paramount's allegations of 'antisemitism'

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Set us as preferred Dozens of Jewish artists are defending Mark Ruffalo after Paramount Skydance branded the actor’s criticisms about software company Oracle Corp.as “antisemitic tropes.”Support for the actor comes as Paramount’s Chief Executive David Ellison has struggled to get its $111-billion Warner Bros.

Discovery merger over the finish line amid considerable opposition.Ruffalo has long been an irritant to Paramount as he is a leading figure in a high-profile Hollywood campaign to block the merger.In an Instagram post late last month, Ruffalo blasted Larry Ellison’s Texas-based software company Oracle for assisting with technology to help Israeli military efforts, including in Gaza — a conflict that Ruffalo and other progressive activists have opposed because of the killing of Palestinians.In an open letter, signed by more than 150 filmmakers, academics, writers and even a few rabbis, the group denounced “the outrageous smear campaign against our respected colleague Mark Ruffalo.”“Enough with the false and dangerous weaponization of charges of antisemitism against those who are brave enough to point out the obvious: that the assault on the Palestinian people and the assault on our liberties at home are deeply interconnected, and there is nothing antisemitic about recognizing that fact,” the group wrote.Tuesday’s letter was signed by several high-profile filmmakers, including Joel Coen, Hannah Einbinder, Tony Kushner, Lisa Cholodenko, Ilana Glazer, Frances Fisher, Todd Haynes, and Sarah Kunstler.

Hollywood Inc.Paramount’s board has approved David Ellison’s contingency plan to move headquarters from Hollywood as early as this fall, according to people familiar with the situation.The group tied David Ellison’s merger ambitions to his billionaire father’s expansive network of businesses, which ...