Legal battles between actors and production houses are common in the entertainment industry. These disputes can arise from various issues, such as breach of contract, payment disputes, intellectual property rights, or disagreements over creative control. Scarlett Johansson is one such actress who stood against a major production house and filed a lawsuit.
As Johansson’s stardom has ascended, she has gained confidence in speaking out against mistreatment. This was demonstrated in July 2021 when she surprised the industry by challenging Hollywood’s dominant force, Disney. While quarantining in her Upper East Side apartment and anticipating the birth of her second child, Cosmo, the actress took legal action against the studio shortly after the debut of its Marvel prequel, Black Widow.
Why Did Scarlett Johansson Drag Disney To Court
The dispute arose from the release of the Marvel movie Black Widow, which was simultaneously released in theaters and on Disney+ as a premium video-on-demand (PVOD) offering. Scarlett Johansson, who starred in and produced the film, claimed that Disney breached her contract by releasing the movie on Disney+ without her consent, which resulted in a loss of box office revenue and a reduction in her potential earnings.
It was a clear breach of contract as her agreement explicitly required that the Avengers spinoff only be shown in movie theaters. To make matters worse, under CEO Bob Chapek’s leadership, Disney boasted about the movie’s success on Disney+ Premier Access, claiming it had amassed over $60 million in global sales – a move viewed as an attempt to inflate the company’s stock price artificially.
When Johansson filed her lawsuit, the studio didn’t hold back and issued a scathing statement criticizing her for showing insensitivity towards the global impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. The studio’s statement appeared to be a declaration of war against Johansson, a loyal Marvel actress who played the role of Natasha Romanoff in eight of its tentpole movies. In the same statement, the studio casually revealed her upfront salary of $20 million, a figure that Johansson has always kept private.
Did Disney And Scarlett Johansson Settle The Dispute
Approximately two months later, Johansson and Disney resolved the lawsuit, although the agreement terms were not disclosed. However, sources indicate that Johansson received over $40 million in compensation. Throughout Hollywood’s history, only a few actors have successfully sued studios, and most of them were men such as Burt Lancaster, Kevin Costner, and Sylvester Stallone. In 2019, the Rocky actor and Warner Bros. resolved a disagreement over profits from four movies, including the 1993 action movie Demolition Man.
“I couldn’t even walk through a restaurant without somebody saying, ‘Good for you. Stand up for yourself,'” Johansson said. “I could see that it had a bigger impact. I got support from strangers that have no skin in the game at all.”
Johansson’s case marked the first time a prominent star has confronted a streaming behemoth in the age of streaming, and it continues to have an impact in Hollywood and beyond as companies took advantage of the pandemic to pressure their employees. In some ways, the battle between Johansson and the media giant could be seen as a precursor to the current writers’ strike that is shaking up the industry.
Black Widow is available for streaming on Disney+.
Source: Variety
