The bare-knuckle battle for control of a $12 billion aluminum giant took a humorous turn on Wednesday when the embattled chief executive compared the motivation of activist hedge fund mogul Paul Singer to “The Godfather”’s Michael Corleone.

Singer’s Elliott Management, which has a 12 percent stake in Arconic, is seeking to oust CEO Klaus Kleinfeld.

“Klaus, don’t take it personal, it’s just business,” Kleinfeld told attendees at a conference, mimicking what he feels is Singer’s attitude toward the proxy battle.

The line drew laughter from most in the audience of the Yahoo All Market Summit — except for the two Elliott reps in the crowd, who sat stone-faced.

Elliott, which also has nominated five people for the Arconic board, has been speaking with management for more than a year but its battle with the company went public
late last week.

In a letter sent to Arconic’s shareholders late Tuesday night, Elliott called Kleinfeld a “uniquely charismatic figure” who used his relationships to “secure his continued employment.” Results under Kleinfeld’s leadership have been “abysmal,” Elliott added.

One day earlier, Arconic’s 12 independent board members sent a letter to shareholders defending their CEO.

In deference to “The Godfather” nod, there was no talk of the board making shareholders an offer they couldn’t refuse.