Ruffalo urges Bonta not to settle Paramount-Warner case
Mark Ruffalo has told California Attorney General Rob Bonta not to drop the multi-state fight to block Paramount Skydance's $111 billion bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, according to Variety.
The actor named Bonta and 11 other state attorneys general in a post on X. He urged them not to cave on the antitrust lawsuit, a legal action that claims the merger would harm competition, which seeks to stop the takeover led by Paramount Skydance chief David Ellison.
Ruffalo said 5,670 filmmakers backed the opposition and more than 75,000 people had signed against a settlement in three weeks. US Senator Elizabeth Warren added her voice, saying it would be a massive mistake to cave on the Paramount merger.
The appeal followed a report in The Wall Street Journal, citing unnamed sources, that Paramount Skydance and Bonta were in advanced talks on a settlement, as relayed by Variety. No settlement has been announced. The report rests entirely on those unnamed accounts.
The US Department of Justice approved the $111 billion deal in June, but the purchase was then put on hold by the state-led challenge. Court papers identify the California case as Case No. 4:26-cv-7116, according to a filing from the California Department of Justice.
Time is tight. Paramount agreed to pay Warner Bros. shareholders a ticking fee, an extra payment for delay, if the merger had not closed by 30 September 2026, according to a later court filing. That date is ten days after 20 September 2026. The two companies first entered into their merger agreement on 27 February 2026.
Ruffalo has opposed the deal for months. In April, he and Emma Thompson were among more than 1,000 Hollywood professionals who signed an open letter against Paramount's bid for Warner Bros., according to The Guardian. Bonta cancelled a meeting with Paramount Skydance in August, according to NBC Los Angeles.
The row has turned personal. A Paramount representative called Ruffalo antisemitic after he criticised the Ellison family's links with Israel. Ruffalo denied the charge.
For viewers, this means a straight choice is near. Either the state lawsuit keeps the $111 billion takeover on hold, or a settlement lets it move forward.
