Jane Fonda Admits It’s “Sad” To Oppose David Ellison Over Paramount-Warner Bros. Merger

Hollywood’s biggest mergers rarely unfold without public commentary from the industry’s most outspoken figures, and few have been as consistently vocal as this two-time Oscar winner. Her activism has spanned decades, but few causes have drawn as much of her recent attention as the media consolidation reshaping the industry she’s spent her career in.

Fonda’s opposition to the deal isn’t new, having previously worn a “Block the Merger” pin to a Vanity Fair Oscar party earlier this year and publicly defended Mark Ruffalo after Paramount accused him of antisemitism over his own criticism of the merger. What makes her latest comments notable is how openly she’s grappling with the tension between her politics and a genuine personal friendship.

Speaking with Variety, Fonda explained that standing against the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger is sad for her because she likes David Ellison very much, but stressed that it isn’t a personal matter. She said she’s hopeful the merger can still be stopped, pointing to the significant debt both companies are carrying and warning that the deal would ultimately be terrible for consumers, driving prices up and costing thousands of people their jobs.

Fonda went further, framing her concerns in terms of the broader creative industry rather than just her own career. She explained that as a creative herself, fewer studios mean fewer places for artists to bring their work, weakening bargaining power and diminishing the influence of unions across the entertainment business, according to Variety.

What complicates Fonda’s stance is her genuine fondness for David Ellison, whose company Skydance financed her long-running Netflix series ‘Grace and Frankie’ across its seven-year run. She acknowledged getting to know him personally during that time and said she likes him, but was firm that their relationship doesn’t change how she views the merger’s broader consequences.

That personal connection hasn’t stopped her from speaking out repeatedly against the deal in recent months. Fonda previously told Variety at a Vanity Fair Oscar party that the mergers would be bad for workers, warning that job losses, higher prices, and political control over media content were all real risks tied to the consolidation.

Fonda’s advocacy extended beyond the merger itself when she publicly defended Ruffalo after Paramount labeled his criticism of the deal antisemitic. Ruffalo had denounced Larry Ellison’s ties to Israel alongside his broader concerns about the merger, prompting the accusation from Paramount.

In her statement, Fonda argued that Ruffalo has a First Amendment right to speak out about politics and powerful corporations, calling the antisemitism accusation a smear meant to delegitimize criticism of the merger rather than a genuine concern. She framed it as an attempt to distract from a more fundamental question about how much power a single company should be allowed to accumulate over movies, television and news.

Fonda also invoked the legacy of CNN founder Ted Turner, to whom she was married for a decade, suggesting he would be troubled by the idea of Paramount eventually owning the network he built. She’s previously referenced that connection when discussing her concerns about political influence over CNN’s editorial independence under new ownership.

With the merger still working its way through what Fonda describes as a growing resistance movement, her comments add another high-profile voice to an already contentious fight over the future of the industry. Whether that resistance ultimately succeeds in halting the deal remains to be seen, but Fonda has made clear she intends to keep speaking out regardless of her personal feelings toward those involved.

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