Groups summon Disney’s “character attack” on Johansson

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In what may be the most high-profile lawsuit between a movie star and studio in Hollywood history, Scarlett Johansson is suing Disney for breaching the contractual payment structure on Marvel’s Black Widow. Like many stars, Johansson has a series of bonuses built into her contract based on how much money the movie makes at the box office, but when Disney chose to release the movie simultaneously in theaters and via Premiere Access on Disney+, they sliced ​​the potential of the film’s box office earnings, This reduced Johansson’s payday.

Instead of renegotiating the terms of the contract or agreeing to pay compensation, Disney largely ignored Johansson and her team’s request to resolve the outstanding issue. Disney responded with an angry letter, calling Johansson’s claim a “blatant disregard for the horrific and protracted global effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.” One wonders how they would respond if Chris Evans or Robert Downey Jr. faced a similar situation. It’s especially disturbing given that Disney itself has shown a “blatant disregard” for COVID-19, what happened with 32,000 layoffs during the pandemic.

#TIMESUPENT pic.twitter.com/2Q3oVn0XTK

– TIME’S UP (@TIMESUPNOW) July 30, 2021

Time’s Up, ReFrame, and Women in Film have released a joint statement regarding Scarlett Johansson’s lawsuit against Disney for breach of contract with the release of Black Widow. The statement reads, “While we take no position on commercial issues in the litigation between Scarlett Johansson and The Walt Disney Company, we stand firmly against Disney’s recent statement attempting to characterize Johansson as insensitive or selfish for her defense of her contractual commercial rights. There is no place for this attack on gender character.” in a commercial dispute and contributes to an environment in which women and girls are seen as less able than men to protect their interests without facing gender criticism.”

Johansson’s agency CAA also released a statement defending his client from the character attack. “They have shamelessly and wrongly accused Ms. Johansson of being insensitive to the global COVID pandemic, in an effort to make her look like someone they are and I know she is not,” said Brian Lord, co-chair of Creative Artists Agency. Attempting to weaponize her success as an artist and businesswoman, as if that’s something she should be ashamed of,… Scarlett is incredibly proud of the work she’s done, and all of the actors, writers, directors, producers, and Marvel creative team have been a part of over a decade.”

“Disney’s direct attack on her character and all that it indicates is under the company that many of us in the creative community have worked with successfully for decades,” he said. And he’s not wrong: Johansson has appeared in nine Marvel films as a core member of the Avengers, a franchise that has made Disney billions of dollars.

Disney has been betting that Scarlett Johansson’s problematic history, along with the rampant misogyny we see targets successful women to somehow embarrass her into accepting a substandard offer. Plus, they obviously hoped she would remain silent to maintain her relationship with the studio. But Johansson is part of a high class of successful actors who don’t need Disney or its affiliates.

In response, fellow actors Emma Stone and Emily Blunt were reportedly considering lawsuits of their own, as their films Cruella and Jungle Cruise were under the same hybrid release structure as Black Widow. If they join Johansson, they could launch a major power game between the A-list actresses and Disney.

(via Variety, Photo: Marvel Studios)

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