ScarJo files lawsuit against Disney for breach of contract
WSJ: Scarlett Johansson filed a lawsuit Thursday against $DIS, alleging her contract was breached “when the media giant released the film on its Disney+ streaming service at the same time as its theatrical debut.” https://t.co/lTjtxZXExS
- Carl Quintanilla (@carlquintanilla) July 29, 2021
Scarlett Johansson has filed a lawsuit against Disney over the release of Black Widow in what she is calling a breach of contract.
The lawsuit states that ScarJo's contract with the studio guaranteed an exclusive theater release of her films and that her salary was largely based on box office performance of said films. The lawsuit also states that Disney intentionally breached the agreement, without justification, when they gave Black Widow a hybrid theater and Disney+ release.
Source also states ScarJo's team reached out in 2019, before the pandemic even started, to get assurance that the film would go to theaters only and not get put on Disney+. Disney said it would follow a traditional release model and that they would discuss her deal if plans were to change. When it did and the team went to Disney and Marvel, they received no response.
Sources say ScarJo is projected to lose $50+ million due to the hybrid release.
Warners recently paid its talent $200+ million after it decided to release its 2021 films in theaters and HBO Max at the same time.
Source