Skydance’s Ynon Kreiz Calls on Business Leaders To Stand Against Antisemitism
Hollywood’s biggest names spend much of the fall at charity dinners, and the Simon Wiesenthal Center’s annual award night is one of the most prominent. The center was founded in 1977 and named after the late Nazi hunter. It describes its mission as confronting antisemitism, defending Israel’s legitimacy and promoting human rights.
This year’s event put the newly merged studio front and center. On Wednesday, November 11, the center held its 2026 Los Angeles Humanitarian Award Dinner at the Beverly Wilshire in Beverly Hills, honoring Skydance co-CEO Ynon Kreiz. The dinner chairs included David Ellison, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Shari Redstone, Cheryl and Haim Saban, Mindy and Marc Utay, and David Zaslav.
Kreiz used his acceptance speech to talk about corporate responsibility. “We recognize that business leadership comes with moral responsibility,” Kreiz said, as reported by Deadline. He focused on himself, Ellison, Skydance, and the platforms they control as ways to fight the spread of hate.
The former Mattel boss addressed global antisemitism directly. He said Israel now faces a very different world beyond its borders, one where old hatred has found new platforms to spread.
He also drew a line on criticism. Kreiz said that defending Israel doesn’t mean Israel is beyond criticism, and that the fight against antisemitism is part of a broader fight against hatred in any form.
Kreiz praised his business partner as well. He thanked Ellison for his “bold stand for Israel and the Jewish people,” said the U.S.-Israel relationship must remain unshakable, and denounced the rise in antisemitism around the world since October 7.
Kreiz received the center’s 2026 Humanitarian Award from Ellison, Gal Gadot and Jeffrey Katzenberg. Katzenberg introduced Ellison and traced his path from young producer to media mogul overseeing Paramount, Warner Bros., HBO, CBS and CNN.
Ellison spoke warmly about his co-CEO. He said Kreiz was a good friend when he first agreed to speak at the dinner, before the 2 became colleagues, and that he was grateful to now call him a partner. He also encouraged the audience to follow the center’s example and speak out against injustice.
Gadot had one of the night’s most emotional moments. She was smiling while telling the crowd how Kreiz once delivered his baby daughter in a car pulled over on a busy London street, then became visibly emotional as she spoke about the rise in antisemitism. She closed by encouraging Kreiz to keep shining his light.
Kreiz wasn’t the only honoree. Former CNN anchor Bianna Golodryga received the Jewish Heritage Award, and activist Elica Le Bon received the Medal of Valor for her work against antisemitism. The dinner is a major fundraiser: last year’s Los Angeles gala raised $4.3 million and honored then-WBD CEO David Zaslav, and organizers aimed to beat that total this year.
Before the ceremony, Kreiz spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about a separate controversy. He said he wholeheartedly agreed with the Ellisons’ response to an Instagram post by Mark Ruffalo criticizing the merger and Israel. Asked whether he would work with Ruffalo, whose HBO series ‘Task’ now falls under his oversight, Kreiz didn’t answer directly.
The gala capped an eventful week for the studio’s leadership. On Monday, Skydance announced that James Gunn and Peter Safran were stepping down as heads of DC Studios, and Ellison and Kreiz issued a joint statement praising their work.
Do you think Hollywood executives have a responsibility to speak out against antisemitism and other forms of hatred?
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