Scarlett Johansson, the lead star of the latest MCU movie Black Widow, has sued Disney, which owns Marvel Studios, for breaching her contract by simultaneously releasing the movie in theatres as well as Disney+ in the US and a few other countries. The news was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.
As per the WSJ report, the lawsuit was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on Thursday. Johansson said that her agreement with Disney-owned Marvel Entertainment involved a guarantee that the film will exclusively be released in theatres and her salary was based on the box-office performance of the movie. The suit said, “Disney intentionally induced Marvel’s breach of the agreement, without justification, in order to prevent Ms. Johansson from realizing the full benefit of her bargain with Marvel.” Black Widow, which is yet to be released in India, brings back Johansson’s Russian spy turned Avenger as she faces demons from her past: particularly the Red Room run by a former Russian general that trains and literally brainwashes little girls to become ruthless assassins.
Disney has responded to the lawsuit. A statement quoted by Variety read, “There is no merit whatsoever to this filing. The lawsuit is especially sad and distressing in its callous disregard for the horrific and prolonged global effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
