Canceled Hollywood star Gina Carano, the actress known for her role in the Disney+ Star Wars show, “The Mandalorian,” has filed a lawsuit against The Walt Disney Co. and Lucasfilm.
The lawsuit, lodged in federal court in California this Tuesday, alleges that Carano was unjustly dismissed from her role as the rebel warrior Cara Dune due to her expression of right-wing opinions on social media platforms.
“A short time ago in a galaxy not so far away, Defendants made it clear that only one orthodoxy in thought, speech, or action was acceptable in their empire, and that those who dared to question or failed to fully comply would not be tolerated,” the lawsuit says. “And so it was with Carano.”
Carano is seeking justice through a court mandate for either reinstatement in the series or compensation amounting to at least $75,000. The actress claims the firing has not only caused her emotional turmoil but also resulted in the loss of millions in potential income.
This action follows her 2021 dismissal, which Lucasfilm attributed to social media posts by Carano that they described as “denigrating people based on their cultural and religious identities,” a claim firmly rejected by Carano.
The actress has been an outspoken conservative voice in Hollywood, a stance that she believes led to her being unfairly targeted while her co-star, Pedro Pascal – known for his liberal views – faced no repercussions for similar actions.
“Jews were beaten in the streets, not by Nazi soldiers but by their neighbors…even by children. Because history is edited, most people today don’t realize that to get to the point where Nazi soldiers could easily round up thousands of Jews, the government first made their own neighbors hate them simply for being Jews. How is that any different from hating someone for their political views,” Gina Carano said in the caption of her Instagram post.
Pascal’s since-deleted posts, which also used Nazi analogies to criticize former President Trump, did not result in any public disciplinary action by Lucasfilm.
Tech billionaire Elon Musk has entered the fray, offering financial backing for Carano’s legal challenge through his company, X. It can be recalled Musk pledged that he would provide unlimited legal funding for individuals who have been unfairly treated by their employers due to their activities on social media, that challenge the prevailing narrative.
“As a sign of X Corp’s commitment to free speech, we’re proud to provide financial support for Gina Carano’s lawsuit, empowering her to seek vindication of her free speech rights on X and the ability to work without bullying, harassment, or discrimination,” X’s head of business operations Joe Benarroch announced per NBC News.
In a detailed statement on X, Carano detailed her experience, criticizing the double standards applied to her and her male counterparts and the damage to her career and reputation. She refuted the claims that her posts were aggressive or derogatory, arguing that her intentions were misconstrued and that she was victim of a smear campaign.
“Today is an important day for me–I am filing a lawsuit against Lucasfilm and Disney
After my 20 years of building a career from scratch, and during the regime of former Disney CEO Bob Chapek, Lucasfilm made this statement on Twitter, terminating me from The Mandalorian: “Gina Carano is not currently employed by Lucasfilm & there are no plans for her to be in the future. Nevertheless, her social media posts denigrating people based on their cultural & religious identities are abhorrent & unacceptable.”
Nothing could be further from the truth. The truth is I was being hunted down from everything I posted to every post I liked because I was not in line with the acceptable narrative of the time. My words were consistently twisted to demonize & dehumanize me as an alt right wing extremist. It was a bullying smear campaign aimed at silencing, destroying & making an example out of me.
The thing is I never even used aggressive language. I shared thought provoking quotes, pictures, memes & occasionally I used my own words, not with aggression but with respect & the occasional comedy to keep the mood light in dark times.
Look with your own eyes at what I posted and ask yourself, for example, where did I compare Republicans to the Jewish people in the holocaust? I didn’t. Ask yourself why they were calling me a racist, was there any merit behind that or history of it whatsoever? No. Look at why I was called a transphobe–for making droid noises from Star Wars? “Beep, bop, boop” was obviously directed to the online bullies and did not in any way denigrate transgender people.
Were my questions about masks, lockdowns & forced vaccines ok to ask & push the subject into the light? Should we have been allowed to publicly discuss those topics at that time without being harassed or censored? Absolutely.
Hollywood says they support female representation & equal rights. Why then were my male co-stars permitted to speak without harassment & re-education courses or termination, but I was not afforded the same right to exercise my freedom of speech.
Artists do not sign away our rights as American citizens when we enter into employment. I have spoken to all my co-stars since I was fired & there is nothing but care and kind words between us. I respect their right to free speech & do not have to think the same on every issue to be their friends & work with them & I know they feel the same towards me.
A couple months ago, Elon Musk tweeted that if you had been fired from using the platform (X) for exercising your right to free speech, he would like to offer these people legal representation. Quite the noble offer, but never in my wildest dreams would I have thought anyone would take on my case against Lucasfilm/Disney. Still, I did respond back “I think I qualify” & thousands of people agreed–but I did not expect anything.
To my surprise, a few months ago I received an email from a lawyer who had been hired by X to look into my story & many others. Turns out after sending them as much information as I could gather these past few months, my now lawyers & X believe whole-heartedly in my case & are moving forward.
I would like to express my deepest gratitude & thank you to Elon Musk and X for giving me an opportunity to bring my case to light.
As for me, I would love to pick up where I left off & continue my journey of creating & participating in story-telling, which is my utmost passion & everything I worked so hard for. It has been difficult to move forward with the lies & labels stuck on me, backed & encouraged by the most powerful entertainment company in the world. I am grateful someone has come to my defense in such a powerful way & look forward to clearing my name.
Thank you to all the people who have supported me & made your voices heard. I pray God blesses each & every one of you.
With love,
Gina Carano”
Today is an important day for me–I am filing a lawsuit against @lucasfilm & @Disney
After my 20 years of building a career from scratch, and during the regime of former Disney CEO Bob Chapek, Lucasfilm made this statement on Twitter, terminating me from The Mandalorian: “Gina…
— Gina Carano (@ginacarano) February 6, 2024