Mark Ruffalo has renewed his criticism of the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger following Wednesday’s announcement that the deal has received approval and is tentatively scheduled to close next week.
“This merger will stifle creativity, weaken free speech, and cost people their jobs — it is a bad deal for this country and should never have been approved,” Ruffalo wrote in a statement posted to Threads on Wednesday. “This is an incredibly disappointing outcome for the hundreds of thousands of us who stood up to block it, but it’s also not the end. This grassroots movement isn’t going to fade away and neither is our resolve.”
He added: “This was never about just one merger: this was about fighting back against corrupt oligarch billionaires trampling the interests of everyday people to line their own pockets. We’re still in that fight. Join us.”
Ruffalo has been a vocal opponent of the consolidation for some time. Earlier this month, he publicly urged California Attorney General Rob Bonta and a coalition of 11 other state attorneys general not to settle their lawsuit against Paramount Skydance, a move that would effectively clear the path for David Ellison to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery.
“Don’t you dare, [Rob Bonta], do not cave,” Ruffalo wrote on X. “5,670 filmmakers put their necks on the line for you to fight this merger. Another 75,000+ and counting have signed to tell you not to concede in just three weeks. You work for the people — the very people who will be hurt if you let this lousy deal filled with empty promises go forward. Please sign to send a message to the AGs and Paramount. Reject the deal. The people don’t want it!”