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Disney said there was "no merit" to the
lawsuit, saying it had complied with her contract. It added in a
statement that the release of the movie on its streaming
platform had "significantly enhanced her (Johansson's) ability
to earn additional compensation on top of the $20 million she
has received to date.”
Johansson's complaint, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court,
argued that the dual release strategy of "Black Widow" had
reduced her compensation, which was based partly on box office
receipts from what was supposed to be an exclusive run in
cinemas.
"Black Widow" debuted on July 9 in theaters and for a $30 charge
on the Disney+ streaming service. Disney has been testing the
hybrid pattern for some films during the coronavirus pandemic as
the company tried to boost its streaming service while many
movie theaters around the world were closed.
Johansson's lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, claims
that Disney wanted to steer audiences toward Disney+, "where it
could keep the revenues for itself while simultaneously growing
the Disney+ subscriber base, a proven way to boost Disney's
stock price."
"Second, Disney wanted to substantially devalue Ms. Johansson’s
agreement and thereby enrich itself," the lawsuit said.
The suit seeks unspecified damages to be determined at trial.
The outcome could have broad ramifications in Hollywood as media
companies try to build their streaming services by offering
premium programming to lure subscribers.
The Disney statement said the lawsuit was "especially sad and
distressing in its callous disregard for the horrific and
prolonged global effects of the COVID-19 pandemic."
"Black Widow," the story of the Russian assassin turned Avenger,
pulled in $80 million at U.S. and Canadian box offices over its
debut weekend. The movie also generated $60 million through
Disney+ purchases, Disney said.
Johansson has played the character in nine Marvel films.
Other movie studios including AT&T Inc's Warner Bros. have
negotiated payments to actors and others involved in films that
were originally planned for theaters only but also offered on
streaming during the pandemic.
Johansson's suit said her representatives approached Disney
about resolving the issue but were "largely ignored."
The actress topped the Forbes magazine list of the world's
highest-paid actress in 2018 and 2019. Johansson's pre-tax
earnings totaled $56 million from June 2018 to June 2019.
Disney also is offering a same-day streaming release starting
Friday for "Jungle Cruise," an action-adventure movie starring
Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt.
(Reporting by Nivedita Balu in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak
Dasgupta, Jonathan Oatis and David Gregorio)
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