Mark Ruffalo CALLS OUT Larry Ellison’s Support Of Israel

I can't talk to them anymore. They're either trying to they're either trying to convince me that the Palestinian people are all terrorists and they all deserve to die or in the same in the same breath will tell me that they're actually human shields and they deserve to die because they're human shields. Okay. >> These are people who were friends of yours pre- October 7th. >> People who I thought were friends of mine >> and they're not anymore. >> No. That was Hollywood actor Mark Ruffalo speaking to Zateos Med Hassan last year um about the impact of his pro Palestine activism on his friendships. Um Ruffalo is a longtime supporter of Palestinian rights. Um so can you guess what he's been accused of this weekend? >> Cruelty to animals. >> Yeah, it could be. Um the story relates to the billionaire Ellison family. Of course, the top dog in the Ellison family is Larry. He's the founder of the software company Oracle and one of the world's richest men. Um he recently took control of US Tik Tok. He has financial interests in the TV channel CBS where several editorial changes took place after it was acquired by Paramount including making former New York Times columnist Baris editorin chief. Um Paramount is owned by Larry's son um David. Um and that company is currently trying to purchase Warner Brothers Discovery. Now this would put the Ellison's in charge of a huge media empire which was already worrying for anyone concerned with justice for Palestinians. Larry Ellison has donated millions of dollars to the IDF. Um, and Oracle is an organization that has declared its support for Israel openly, publicly, and repeatedly. And an interview with the company's former CEO has recently gone viral. >> There's a few things that we did that I really can't talk about to be honest because to advance the agenda for the Israeli military. But our teams did a lot. We have some really profoundly scary technology at Oracle and we um wanted to make sure that it was available um for the effort. Let's just say that. Okay. >> This the the laughing is really cynical, isn't it? Let's just say that. We can't say exactly how we helped the Israelis, but you know, we did. Um obviously, I mean, relating to the last conversation, we just had Oracle software company, so it could easily have been sort of finding targets. So that would have made a lot of sense in terms of what one would use Oracle to do. Um that video was shared by Mark Ruffalo who alongside um the clip um said this. This is the company that Larry Ellison is using to fund his son David's Warner Bros. acquisition. 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. 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. There is an old saying, the way you do one thing is the way you do everything. From one of the biggest tech companies in the world, powering some of the most destructive and inhuman forces in the world. Um he ended by calling the Ellisons um and cats, it was the lady in the video, really profoundly scary people. And that quickly earned a response from Paramount who said this. We are as always troubled when anti-Semitic tropes are invoked in purported service of a business dispute. Words like genocide and apartheid applied to a corporate transaction aren't just wrong, they're a bridge too far and they cheapen the very real suffering those words are meant to describe. This doesn't deserve a response in kind. And to be clear, we don't tolerate prejudice of any kind against anyone. So again, this is a Larry Ellison has donated millions of pounds to the IDF. Um, as you just saw in that clip, Oracle brags about having helped the Israelis in their genocidal war against the Palestinians in Gaza. Right. So this is this is not the the connection between the Ellison's and Israel and the IDF and Israeli war fighting is not one based on insinuation. It's very explicit. They're not secretive about it. Right? So I mean this is one of the more ridiculous sort of accusations of antise-mitism. There are many to go around. Um Ruffalo wasn't having it posting a reply to Twitter on Saturday night. So he said, "The accusation that I am anti-Semitic is appalling and fundamentally dishonest. 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. This critical and necessary dialogue is then dishonestly framed as being anti-Israel. To be clear, my views come from my own political convictions and should never be interpreted as hostility towards Jewish people for whom I have a deep love and respect. Everything I know about acting, activism, and humanism has been profoundly shaped by my Jewish friends, colleagues, and loved ones who have been integral um and family throughout every point of my life. Um that response has been viewed 28 million times so far. It received over 800,000 likes. Um so Israel still not winning sort of the the social media war. Um even if their weaponry is a bit more sophisticated than their opponents. Um, Ash, I mean, I suppose, you know, Hollywood was often associated as sort of somewhere where sort of like support for Israel is quite strong among especially like executives. Um, but it does seem like that's kind of changing especially sort of like big mainstream actors very very willing to speak out against Israel and in favor of Palestinian rights. I mean so one thing which is really important to add to the context is that you have had actors being blacklisted being removed from projects because they spoke out against the genocide particularly in 2023 2024. Um I think what's happened is that there's been a level of anger and disgust and I suppose professional solidarity. People from within the in the industry can see what's happening and they they're opposed to it. Second thing is that celebrities, they're just like us, as in they can see the same live stream genocide that all of us can, and that very much appeals to their sense of conscience. Um, and and on top of that, they're aware of what the sort of behind the scenes chicainery is in terms of people being punished in their careers, being negatively impacted for speaking out. Um the thing that I suppose I wanted to talk about is um the thing about a corporate statement which says we are as always troubled when anti-semitic tropes are invoked. So one of the points that I made in my book is that this very discursive way of understanding racism through tropes and language and imagery as opposed to what's happening, who's being affected and how are they being affected. um was always a sort of it was a product of liberalism and it was always going to be adopted by um corporations and bad faith actors who don't give a hoot about human progress because it's a really effective way of obscuring material inequalities, actual dynamics which involve violence and harm. Um, and I think that it's a sign that of course there are anti-semitic tropes, of course there are racist tropes, there are Islamophobic tropes, there are anti-black tropes, etc., etc. But that way of understanding what racism is, I think, can often and indeed increasingly obscure what the truth is rather than point you towards what the truth is. Because of course, if you wanted to, if you wanted to, you could say, well, yes, this is a classic anti-semitic trope. You're talking about a network of individuals with access to wealth and power who are cooperating in a way which is detrimental to the human good. That's an anti-Semitic trope. That is also what Larry Ellison is doing. So what takes priority, the truth or the fact that that truth can be presented as an age-old trope? Now my opinion, and I suspect yours is too, is that the truth has to take priority. Um, but I think it's it's worth pointing out that that is a a language trap that perhaps we ourselves on the left developed and participated in. And I think it's time to think about a way out of it. >> If there's anyone watching and thinking, who the hell is Mark Ruffalo? There might be some of you. Um, he's currently appearing in the new Spider-Man movie. He's part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I think he's had other jobs as well. >> He was in Spotlight. He was really good in Spotlight. >> What is I don't know Spotlight. Spotlight is about the investigative journalism team who lifted the lid on uh pedophile priests in Boston. >> That does sound interesting. Um anyway, back to the Marvel universe. So, when it comes to pro Palestinian activism or activism, anti-genocide activism, I suppose I like to I think it's almost better to say that because it's not really about sort of solidarity with the national movement. It's about saying end I mean it might be about solidarity with the national movement, but it's it's not about picking one team over another, right? It's about being in favor of human rights universally. Um, Ruffalo doesn't appear to be alone amongst cast members of the Marvel films. So, the new Arab reports that at least 20 actors in the the Marvel films have signed their names to a campaign supporting the release of Marwan Barguti, a Palestinian political prisoner who is often compared to South Africa's Nelson Mandela and both for his popularity among Palestinians and the length of time he spent in jail. Um, Israel has imprisoned Barguti for more than 24 years on highly contested charges with family members reporting serious abuses carried out against him. Um, Ruffalo is a signary alongside Benedict Cumberbatch, Don Cheedel, Tilda Swinton, Ian Mckllen, and many more. That's quite a You wouldn't normally associate like the Marvel univer because I suppose not all of them are from the Marvel. 20 of them are from the Marvel. Is Tilda Swinton in the Marvel universe? I don't think she is. >> Uh, look, >> I've never I've only ever watched one of these films. >> I would say it's now like a a minority of like the Screen Actors Guild who aren't in a Marvel >> in a Marvel movie. Yeah, probably true. Does this matter? Um >> I mean the letter probably doesn't right but the campaign to free Marwang Baruti is actually quite >> I I suppose like if if if you're trying to draw a historical comparison you should draw it to South Africa and the pop culture that was around it. So it wasn't just protests, it wasn't just boycotts and divestment and sanctions. It was also the fact that in you know countries around the world in the UK in America there was a really strong sort of cultural pressure um of people who were famous and were artistic and were involved in music and acting and all the rest of it keeping the campaign alive and obviously the really famous one is free Nelson Mandela by the specials right it's a huge song So I do think that this is something which it's easy to dismiss, right? And people do dismiss it and they'll go, "Ho ho, these are just rich people with luxury beliefs." Um, you know, let me know when you're actually doing anything. But I do think that having political demands um given expression in arenas which aren't just political, right? Because, you know, I wish everyone was watching the VR media, but they're not. More people are watching Marvel. Um, you know, more people are keeping up with celebrity social media accounts than they are keeping up with the news, right? That's the culture that we live in. Um, and there's a way of of speaking to, you know, normies, quite frankly, which means that you're going to have to have political demands being expressed by these people in these spaces. So, I think it's a good thing. >> Tilda Swinton was apparently in Doctor Strange. This is how estranged I am from the Marvel universe. I had never even heard of that film, but um but all those actors I read you apparently are part of the Marvel universe. >> Um are you a Marvel Universe fan? >> Um my housemate loves it and I remember going to watch Avengers Endgame with him at the cinema and he told me to shut up. He was like, "Stop making noise. I'm really into this." >> I saw that. I thought it was crap. I liked poor Ragnarok cuz it had a story whereas Avengers Assemble was just like new character, new character, new fight, new fight, new character, new character, new fight. And I was like, "What's going on?" >> Very briefly, very brief briefly, because this this has got nothing to do with the news. Um, part of the reason why I'm sick of Marvel is that I just don't like that much CGI and that much on the screen being CGI where it's these polygons on a screen just weightlessly colliding with each other. And I think the beautiful thing about the Odyssey was the reliance on physical effects, I think, gives what you're seeing on screen a certain value. You go, "Wow, what I'm seeing must have been so inventive to put together." And it it makes you feel compelled by the magic of cinema in a way that CGI can't. >> I agree. I agree with Ash Saka.