More than 150 Jewish filmmakers, writers, academics and rabbis signed an open letter Tuesday, Sept. 1, defending actor Mark Ruffalo. Paramount Skydance had accused him of invoking "antisemitic tropes" in his campaign to block the company's proposed $111-billion merger with Warner Bros. Discovery.

The letter, signed by filmmaker Joel Coen, playwright Tony Kushner, director Todd Haynes, comedian Ilana Glazer and actress Hannah Einbinder, among others, called the accusation "the outrageous smear campaign against our respected colleague Mark Ruffalo," the Los Angeles Times reported.

The escalation comes as Paramount's board has approved CEO David Ellison's contingency plan to move the company's headquarters from its Melrose Avenue studio in Hollywood as early as this fall, according to the Times, citing people familiar with the situation. Tennessee and Texas have both been floated as possible destinations. Larry Ellison, David's father and Oracle Corporation co-founder, moved Oracle to Nashville in 2024.

A CVL Economics report for Los Angeles County estimated the merger would eliminate 4,500 LA jobs and $1.26 billion in wages. The region has already lost more than 50,000 entertainment jobs since 2022, according to the report.

The dispute traces to Aug. 21, when Paramount accused Ruffalo of injecting "antisemitic tropes" into the opposition campaign. Ruffalo had recirculated a two-year-old video of Safra Catz, Oracle's former CEO and a current Paramount board member, in which she said Oracle had "some profoundly scary technology" it wanted to make available to Israel after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks. Leaders of the Simon Wiesenthal Center and the Anti-Defamation League sided with Paramount.

In a post on X on Aug. 22, Ruffalo called the accusation "appalling and fundamentally dishonest," adding that criticizing a prime minister, a military technology contract or the executives behind it is not the same as criticizing Jewish people.

The open letter's signatories went further. "Pointing out the crucial connections between what is happening in Gaza and what is happening in Hollywood is the exact opposite of antisemitism," the letter stated. "It is, for us, the very essence of Jewish ethical duty."

The letter also argued the merger would destroy thousands of livelihoods and further consolidate control of American media.

Paramount declined to comment.

Also on Tuesday, Sept. 1, Emmy winners Bradley Whitford and Einbinder joined Jane Fonda's Committee for the First Amendment in a video campaign against the deal. "No matter what Paramount promises, this mega merger … would cause massive layoffs and cuts to programming," Einbinder said in the video, as reported by The Wrap.

The merger has cleared the U.S. Justice Department and 65 other regulators worldwide. An antitrust lawsuit filed by California Attorney General Rob Bonta and 11 other state attorneys general remains the primary barrier, with a trial scheduled in Oakland.

Bonta canceled settlement talks the week of Aug. 24. On Aug. 25, he said he was open to negotiating but warned against gamesmanship, saying if Paramount wanted "to play games, we've got better things to do."