Rabbinic group accuses Jewish entertainers of 'whitewashing antisemitism' in Mark Ruffalo defense

FIRST ON FOX — A Rabbinic group is calling out some Jewish entertainers for "whitewashing antisemitism" by supporting actor Mark Ruffalo’s harsh opposition to the proposed Warner Bros. Discovery-Paramount merger.

Dozens of Jewish entertainers and artists signed a letter Tuesday "proudly" voicing support for Ruffalo after he was accused of antisemitism when criticizing the proposed $111 billion merger.

Coalition for Jewish Values, which represents over 2,500 traditional, Orthodox rabbis in American public policy, is typically silent when a Hollywood figure says something it finds hateful about Jews or Israel. But the group believes Ruffalo’s comments forced a group of Jewish Hollywood figures that have "little knowledge of Jewish history or the nature of antisemitism" to "deny obvious bigotry."

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Dozens of Jewish entertainers and artists signed a letter voicing support for actor Mark Ruffalo after he was accused of antisemitism in his opposition to the proposed Warner Bros. Discovery-Paramount merger. (Rodin Eckenroth/WireImage)

"Ruffalo did not merely criticize a business deal. In an August 22 Instagram post tying the Paramount-Skydance/Warner Bros. merger to Oracle's work with Israel, Ruffalo claimed that the Ellison family — who are Jewish — were ‘powering some of the most destructive and inhuman forces in the world,’ and framed a corporate transaction as built on ‘genocide’ and ‘apartheid.’ That is not policy criticism, but mischaracterization of civil rights for Jews and Arabs as racism, and the rescue of Jewish hostages as murder," the Coalition for Jewish Values said in a statement.

"Nonetheless, more than 170 Jewish entertainment figures rushed to sign a letter dismissing the antisemitism charge as an ‘outrageous smear campaign.’ To be certain, they are entitled to their ignorant and misguided views," the statement continued. "They are not, however, entitled to be taken seriously when they engage in whitewashing antisemitism, or suggest that those with sufficient discernment to recognize the oldest of anti-Jewish tropes should deny the obvious."

The group noted that "America set itself apart from much of the world precisely by declaring hatred of Jews unwelcome, regardless of who dressed it up as righteousness," and feels "Ruffalo would do well to remember that he owes much of his career to the Founding Fathers who made America so hospitable, and the Jews who fled persecution in Europe to build new homes for their children in a friendlier land."

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Actor Mark Ruffalo is an outspoken advocate for progressive causes. (Karwai Tang/WireImage)

"It is some of those children, working in New York in the early 20th century, who created Marvel Comics and invented The Incredible Hulk," the group said.

Rabbi Yaakov Menken, executive vice president for the group, told Fox News Digital that Ruffalo's remarks were "embarrassing" and he had a "mythical inversion" of the situation in the Middle East.

Ruffalo was accused of invoking "antisemitic tropes" by Paramount after the Marvel star shared a video from August of Safra Catz, an Oracle executive vice chair and Paramount board member, discussing technology Oracle used to assist Israel after the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack.

He linked Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, the father of Paramount CEO David Ellison, to financing behind the proposed acquisition and suggested the merger would be used to push "oppression."

"These ‘really profoundly scary technologies’ will most likely be merged into one of the largest media conglomerates in the world and one day used on you," Ruffalo said. "Look how she revels in what we now have come to see as a genocide, which was built on an apartheid system of oppression powered by Oracle."

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Paramount Skydance Chairman & CEO David Ellison. (Noam Galai/Getty Images for Paramount)

The Jewish artists to sign the letter, who include Abbi Jacobson, Alex Winter, Gina Gershon, Ilana Glazer, James Schamus, Joel Coen, Larry Charles, Kate Berlant, Naomi Klein, Sarah Sherman, Jane Schoenbrun, Todd Haynes and Tony Kushner, denied Ruffalo‘s comments were antisemitic, claiming executives "themselves have explicitly linked to their support for the ongoing depredations being visited on the people of Palestine and their silencing of critics of those horrors."

The celebrities also argued that a majority of American Jews now believe that Israel committed war crimes against Gaza, with a significant portion believing Israel is guilty of genocide. They called for an end to "spurious charges of antisemitism" against people like Ruffalo.

Ruffalo previously denied pushing antisemitism in a statement to Fox News Digital after Paramount's original condemnation.

"The accusation that I am antisemitic is appalling and fundamentally dishonest," Ruffalo said. "Criticizing the actions of the Israeli prime minister, a military technology contract or the executives who supply it is not the same as criticizing Jewish people."

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The proposed transaction would place CNN, HBO and Warner Bros. studio assets under the Ellison family’s control. A coalition of 12 state attorneys general sued to block it on antitrust grounds, and the companies agreed not to close until five days after a court ruling on the merits or June 1, 2027, whichever comes first.

Fox News Digital reached out to Ruffalo's representatives for additional comment.

Fox News Digital’s Lindsay Kornick and CJ Womack contributed to this report.