The Ultimate Superheroines Forum

Regarding the Scarlett Johansson lawsuit.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/disney-ave ... opin_pos_5

Are you on Team Scarlett or Team Disney?

I am on Scarlett, Disney broke the contract and did not even try to redo the agreement.

Team Scarlett all the way. They diluted the box office numbers from which Scarlett derived a small percentage in order for Disney to buildup their streaming service for which Scarlett has no skin in the game. As film theatre box office numbers become less and less of a priority and goal for some entertainment conglomerates in favor of establishing and expanding their streaming brands, this issue is destined to continue to pop up from time to time unless these companies can make side deals with these actors that make up for the discrepancy as they have done with other directors and actors. Disney is cannibalizing their own box office numbers in order to establish their streaming service without compensating the actors who contractually have a small piece of that box office pie.

Studios have consistently used accounting tricks to minimize what they pay.

But this was a clear contract term that it was only to be released in theaters. Diney broke the contract without compensation.

Easy decision, Disney broke the contract...so I'm team Scarlett as well.
And Disney does have way too much money anyhow...I hope they now will have to pay much more as they would have done in the first place.

I've noticed a lot of movies now come out on streaming and theater. Like that jungle movie with the Rock. Wonder if they also messed with him.

IIRC, while WB basically sprang the day-and-date streaming of WW1984 on the director and star, they did make financial amends. That minimal gesture seems absent for Black Widow.

Perhaps Disney felt they could do it because this was Scarlett's last time out.
Perhaps this is Disney working out some frustration over the working relationship -- we're not privy.
Perhaps this is even the long arm of Ike Perlmutter, who I'll not waste words fairly characterizing.

But whatever the reason, they made a deal and then broke it. Even if they can weasel up a technicality about not promising an *exclusive* theatrical release or any particular window of exclusivity, or some act of God clause, they've acted in bad faith. They should settle quickly.

If the dispute lingers it could leave a bad taste in the mouths of the MCU audience.

Team Scarlett. Not only does she seem to have the better of the legal argument from what I can tell, but Dinsey compounded the scumbaggery with the response that accused her of somehow showing a "callous disregard” for the circumstances of the pandemic(?!) by... expecting them to follow through on a contract. That shit is just gross.

The thing about Scrooge McDuck, I'm actually hoping Disney does a swan dive into a vault full of gold coins and break every bone in their body.

Was pretty clear Disney fucked it up when they started complaining about Scarlett being 'callous'. It's like, first off, these motherfuckers ran a themepark in the middle of a pandemic, the idea they can criticise anybody else for not taking the plague seriously is a joke. Secondly, contracts are very carefully written by very expensive professionals to be clear in terms of what constitutes a breach. If Disney's lawyers didn't already know they were in breach they wouldn't be doing the PR shitflinging.

I hope she takes them to the cleaners.

I'm not a lawyer. If they broke the contract, they broke the contract. Disney is a strange beast. With their money and power , you might expect it to do very clever things, though possibly evil, or order to maximise Disney's profits. The reality presumably, in part, is that it's a bunch of people, some of whom are stupid, or care more about their own position within the company, or ability to fail upwards outside of the company, rather than the bottom line.

Just echoing what's already been said really. A contract is a contract. If they broke it than they have to accept the consequences. My best guess would be they plan to settle somehow or other, and when looking at their potential earnings to be made in a theatrical release vs the earnings doing it streaming at the same time vs the probable expense added there in settling up with Scarlet means that they're still getting more money out of it this way... just hope it doesn't mean that like... we'll never ever see Scarlett's Black Widow again in any form. The damage to a working relationship can outstrip temporary gains and losses.

Idk, Disney do what Disney do.

But if you breached the contract you shouldn't be bitching about getting sued over it. The better thing to do would be to simply cop that theater simply isn't making enough money due to the current state of things and this was better for their bottom line, but that they are ready and willing to work with Scarlett to make amends for the breach.

Of course I guess it's technically 'possible' Scarlett is lying... I just have a hard time imagining Disney Corporate are the good guys here xD

It's Disney they've worshipped the dollar since the 1940s and don't give a shit about anybody.
Go get 'em SJ

I want to publicly thank Scarlett Johansson for giving me the perfect excuse to skip watching "The Black Widow" altogether...Solidarity Sister!!