What Mark Ruffalo actually said about Trump as brutal speech sparks outrage from White House
It's been four days since the 2026 Golden Globes, and fans are still astonished by a powerful political speech delivered by actor Mark Ruffalo, in which he slammed Donald Trump as a 'convicted felon'.
Ruffalo had been invited along to this year's festivities with wife Sunrise Coigney, after being nominated for the Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Television Series accolade, following his performance in the crime series Task.
The 58-year-old was up against the likes of Sterling K. Brown for Paradise, Diego Luna for Andor, Gary Oldman for Slow Horses, Adam Scott for Severance, and Noah Wyle for The Pitt - the latter of whom walked away with the grand prize.
Despite missing out on an award, Ruffalo used the opportunity to speak out against the current, right-wing leader of his home nation, referencing the brutal murder of Renee Nicole Good.
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What political stance has Ruffalo taken in the past?
The Avengers Assembly actor has long been a vocal opponent of Republican politics.
In 2020, when 79-year-old Trump's first stint in the White House was drawing to a close, Ruffalo shared a fiery statement online, claiming 'the world should consider' the politician 'public enemy number one'.
Having spent much of the year also raising awareness of the climate change crisis, he went on to get specific, telling his X (formerly Twitter) followers: "What we do in the next 10 years will be crucial to the future of the planet, and this is only going to become more and more evident to us."
Ruffalo added: "We can't rely on the politicians. We can't rely on the regulatory system. We can't rely on the companies.
"They're not going to self-regulate."
In 2023, he repeated these exact sentiments whilst responding to New York Times contributing editor Alex Kingsbury making comments about Trump calling for his supporters to 'go after' New York's attorney general.
"F**king finally. Media starts to wake up..." Ruffalo wrote online at the time. "Presidential contender is calling for Americans to kill and harm Americans. Let that sink in. Enemy of America from within."
The same year, after a court ruled that Trump had committed fraud whilst previously running the Trump Organisation, he also wrote on X: "Another reminder that this man, in totality, is a fraud."
Two years later, following Trump's second inauguration into the Oval Office, he slammed the ultra-wealthy, telling readers of the New York Immigration Coalition: "It's time to take our country back from this extreme wealth that has its hand all over the power of the nation."
Ruffalo also expressed hope for America 'to become a beautiful burgeoning democracy that works for the people and not just for the very wealthy'.
The Shutter Island star following his statement with an appearance at the 'No Kings' protests that took place in October, at which he told fellow attendees: "We have a king, and his court, and his beige henchmen, and they’re trampling on our rights and our laws and our freedoms, making themselves richer with taxpayer dollars and making us less safe with their love of other kings and dictators, and the likes of Putin, and Netanyahu and Kim Jong Un of the world."
Ruffalo also responded to the temporary suspension of Jimmy Kimmel last yea, a decision that was made after the presenter accused Trump of taking advantage of the September assassination of far-right activist Charlie Kirk for political gain.
Describing Kimmel's removal from air as a sign that the US was heading in the direction where life would resemble that 'under the Taliban', the actor hit out: "This cancellation is the US government coming and taking your voice away from you.
"It is the US government that is now suppressing the freedom of speech. It is the U.S. government, not your neighbors, not someone on social media. It is the government doing it now."
The father-of-three continued: "And that's where we all have to come together, because authoritarian regimes, fascist regimes have to degrade our freedoms more and more overtime until we're living the smallest, the most frightened, the most secretive lives.
"Think of yourselves living under the Taliban because that's where we're headed."
What did Ruffalo say at the Golden Globes?
Keeping in line with his strong left-wing views, whilst attending this year's ceremony, Ruffalo was approached by a journalist from USA Today on Sunday evening (11 Jan), who noticed him wearing an anti-ICE pin on the lapel his tuxedo.
Chatting on the ide of the red carpet, he explained: "This is for Renee Nicole Good, who was murdered," Ruffalo replied, referring to the Minneapolis local that was fatally shot by a member of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The Trump-authorised agent behind the killing claimed 27-year-old Good had been 'blocking the street' with her car whilst they were carrying out an operation in Minnesota City.
Unsurprisingly, her death has since sparked widespread protests across the US.
"We're in the middle of a war with Venezuela that we illegally invaded," Ruffalo continued, referencing the kidnap of the country's president Nicolas Madura earlier this month.
"He's [Trump] telling the world that international law doesn’t matter to him."
He added: "The only thing that matters to him is his own morality, but the guy is a convicted felon; a convicted rapist. He’s the worst human being. If we’re relying on this guy’s morality for the most powerful country in the world, then we’re all in a lot of trouble."
The movie star went on to slam Trump as a 'pedophile'.
Though not confirmed, the latter comments likely refer to the May 2024 conviction of Trump on 34 felony counts for falsifying business records.
He was also found liable for sexually abusing E. Jean Carroll in 1994 that same year - though, the latter charges were brushed off due to the suit being a civil one.
The 'pedophile' remark may have also been in reference to Trump's prior relationship with late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein - though, he claims they fell out in the early 2000s, years before the media mogul's first arrest for sex crimes. It's also important to note that Trump has also consistently denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein's abuse.
Bringing the discussion back to Good over the weekend, Ruffalo went on to add: "So this is for her. This is for the people in the United States who are terrorised and scared today. I know I’m one of them.
"I love this country. And what I’m seeing here happening is not America."
How did the White House respond?
In the days following Ruffalo's emotional outburst, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung issued a statement on social media, describing the actor as a 'poor thing'.
"Star of She-Hulk, is one of the worst actors in the business," he hit out.
"More impressively, he's an even worse human being by spewing outright lies because deep down inside, he hates himself for knowingly subjecting the public to his god awful performance."
LADbible Group has previously reached out to Ruffalo's representatives for comment.
Topics: Donald Trump, US News, Celebrity, Politics, Golden Globes
Rhianna Benson