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Mark Ruffalo Criticizes Paramount-Warner Bros. Merger Approval
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In Short: Actor Mark Ruffalo slammed the approval of the $111 billion Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger, calling it a 'bad deal for this country' that will stifle creativity and weaken free speech.
Actor Mark Ruffalo slammed the approval of the $111 billion Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger, calling it a 'bad deal for this country' that will stifle creativity and weaken free speech.
U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín signed off on the antitrust settlement between the David Ellison-led company and a dozen state attorneys general, despite Ruffalo's vocal opposition.
Ruffalo, a two-time Emmy winner and HBO regular, criticized the deal for giving 'one family control over CNN, HBO and Warner Bros.,' and noted the Ellisons' close friendship with former President Donald Trump.
The actor has been a fierce critic of the merger, arguing it is part of a larger fight against 'corrupt oligarch billionaires trampling the interests of everyday people to line their own pockets.
A June 18 report by the L.A. County Department of Economic Opportunity declared that the merger places about 2,495 jobs in Greater Los Angeles County and about 6,000 globally at potential risk.
While awaiting a March 2 trial on the antitrust suit, Paramount faced a $7 million-a-day ticking fee to WBD shareholders if the deal was delayed.
Ruffalo's criticism has also drawn accusations of antisemitism for his remarks about weapons provided by Larry Ellison-founded Oracle to the Israeli military.
What this adds
Mark Ruffalo's criticism of the merger has been ongoing, with the actor urging California Attorney General Rob Bonta not to settle on the antitrust front.
The deal's approval comes after months of legal battles and negotiations, with Paramount facing significant financial penalties for delays.
Background
Actor Mark Ruffalo is urging California Attorney General Rob Bonta not to cave on a potential settlement deal over the Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger.
What's still developing
- RELATED: “Enough!”: Joel Coen & Tony Kushner Among Jewish Artists Behind Open Letter In Support Of Mark Ruffalo Against “Dangerous Weaponization” Of Antisemitism Lamenting the deal giving “one family control over CNN, HBO and Warner Bros., backed in part by foreign money whose influence on editorial decisions has never been fully explained to the public,” as Ruffalo did on August 22, the actor also called out the Ellisons’ close friendship with Donald Trump.
- Paramount brass, who put pressure on Bonta to settle by leaking Elllsion would move the company out of California if no deal was forthcoming, have insisted they are looking at job creation, not job loss.
- Gavin Newsom are known to have had words about the merger at the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards, where the actor was a nominee, on September 14.