John Oliver, the host of HBO’s Last Week Tonight, recently returned to his show after a four-week break and used the opportunity to address Paramount CEO David Ellison and his billionaire father, Larry Ellison. This comes amid Paramount’s ongoing $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company of HBO, which produces Oliver’s show. During the episode, Oliver covered a range of topics, including the U.S. health insurance crisis and the massive media merger. Oliver highlighted the story of Kate Weissman, a cancer patient whose parents spent $95,000 out of pocket on her treatment after United HealthCare denied coverage. He argued that access to healthcare should not depend on a family’s wealth, emphasizing the unfairness of a system where financial status determines life-saving care. This segment was part of his broader critique of the U.S. healthcare system and its growing inequities. The comedian then turned his attention to the business relationship between David Ellison and his father, Larry Ellison, who is a co-founder of Oracle, a major technology company. Larry Ellison has pledged $40 billion to support the Paramount acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. If completed, the deal would make David Ellison’s company the owner of HBO, which hosts Oliver’s show. Oliver joked about the connection between David and Larry Ellison, noting that David has a “literal business daddy” in Larry, and said he would never mock that relationship—unlike Stephen Colbert, whose show was canceled by Paramount last year after 33 years. Oliver’s contract with HBO was recently extended through 2027, just as the Ellisons’ acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery progresses. He had previously made jokes about David Ellison being his “business daddy” during earlier discussions of the merger. In March, Oliver quipped, “We might be getting a new business daddy!” and expressed frustration with the deal. Earlier in 2025, when merger talks first began, Oliver publicly criticized the idea, telling viewers, “Please stay the f*** away from us. You are not my real business daddy, and you never will be.” The Independent has reached out to David Ellison for comment.