Gina Carano
LOS ANGELES - Disney has agreed to roll closing credits on its legal battle with actor Gina Carano, after attorneys for both sides filed a document in Los Angeles federal court announcing the parties had settled their disputes over Carano's claims she was fired from one of Disney's most popular Star Wars TV shows because of her conservative political speech.
The court was informed of the settlement in a filing in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California on Aug. 7.
The terms of the settlement were not disclosed. In the filing, attorneys for Carano and Disney said they "stipulate that this action and all claims, including all defenses asserted therein, be dismissed with prejudice."
In a published statement, the Walt Disney Company and the Star Wars film and television creation house, Lucasfilm, confirmed the dismissal was the result of a settlement.
The announcement did not include an apology to Carano directly. But the media companies said: "Ms. Carano was always well respected by her directors, co-stars and staff, and she worked hard to perfect her craft while treating her colleagues with kindness and respect. With this lawsuit concluded, we look forward to identifying opportunities to work together with Ms. Carano in the near future.”
In a statement posted to social media platform X.com, Carano confirmed she had "come to an agreement with Disney/Lucasfilm which I believe is the best outcome for all parties involved. I hope this brings some healing to the force."
She also thanked billionaire Elon Musk, owner of X.com, "a man I've never met" for financially backing her lawsuit as a "Good Samaritan ... and asking for nothing in return."
"I am excited to flip the page and move onto the next chapter. My desires remain in the arts, which is where I hope you will join me," Carano said.
The settlement comes about four months since a federal judge had agreed to allow Carano and her attorneys access to troves of Disney's financial and payroll information, including contracts for some of Disney's most prominent current actors in its Star Wars properties, including actor Pedro Pascal, star of "The Mandalorian" and actor Diego Luna, star of the Disney+ Star Wars series, "Andor."
Carano had sought such information to back her claims that Disney had discriminated against her, as a female actor, and to determine how much lost pay Disney might actually owe her.
The disclosure rulings had come after a federal judge had also earlier denied Disney's attempt to toss Carano's lawsuit.
Carano had sued Disney and Lucasfilm more than two years ago, accusing Disney of violating her rights by firing her from the Disney+ Star Wars series, "The Mandalorian," in retaliation for her online speech expressing conservative political views.
Musk backed Carano in her lawsuit. The prominent billionaire had pledged to lend such financial aid to anyone who lost a job for statements made on Musk's social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, which Musk acquired over concerns social media companies had colluded to suppress and censor political speech disfavored by left-wing activists and Democratic government officials.
In the lawsuit, Carano asserts her abrupt firing from "The Mandalorian" series in February 2021 violated California's political discrimination law, which provides broad protections against employers terminating employees over their political speech.
The lawsuit also claims Disney discriminated against her on the basis of sex, because the studios did not similarly take action against Carano's male co-stars, including Pedro Pascal and actor Mark Hammill, who portrays Luke Skywalker, both of whom have persistently expressed left-wing statements online, which, she notes, carry the potential to be as culturally divisive as a lightsaber blow to the arm.
For two of "The Mandlorian's" three seasons, Carano portrayed the character of Cara Dune, a former Ranger of the Rebel Alliance, who had turned mercenary, but was persuaded by The Mandalorian to turn legitimate. The series is styled as a space Western in the famous "galaxy far, far away."
Carano's character proved highly popular and marked a new high point in her acting career, who had previously been widely known as an accomplished mixed martial arts fighter.
Carano has also claimed Disney recognized the popularity of the Cara Dune character, allegedly offering her a starring role in a planned "Mandalorian" spinoff series, "Rangers of the New Republic." According to her lawsuit, Carano expected to be paid at least $150,000 per episode for the next six years, which she asserted would have been in line with Disney's reported pay structure for other regulars performing on series for Disney's streaming platform.
However, in 2020 and 2021, amid societal unrest and riots, Carano publicly expressed statements on social media and elsewhere in opposition to the support Disney had expressed for the left-wing uprising under the banner of the Black Lives Matter movement.
Further, Carano refused to join her name to the long list of Hollywood celebrities expressing support for LGBTQ causes, notably including the favor showered by Hollywood and American corporations on the transgender rights movement.
Carano then became the target for blowback online, where she was repeatedly called a "racist" and a "transphobic bitch" for not including pronouns in her social media biography.
Carano was also attacked online for questioning the decisions of California Gov. Gavin Newsom and former President Joe Biden and other Democratic governors and officials to continue lockdown-style orders and restrictions in the name of fighting Covid-19, and particularly restrictions on churches and other religious gatherings.
Throughout the online assault, Disney did not defend Carano's right to speak. Rather, Carano says the company forced her to participate in long meetings and calls, at times with trans activists, "demanding an explanation and criticizing her for not embracing what some see as mandatory solidarity with a vocal element of the transgender activist community."
However, following the 2020 presidential election, when Carano posted an online message appearing to question the validity of Biden's victory over Donald Trump, the actor came under renewed online assault and a hashtag campaign demanding Disney fire Carano.
Within weeks, Disney and Lucasfilm announced they were terminating Carano, claiming she was “denigrating people based on their cultural and religious identities." Carano asserts that claim is false, saying "she was doing just the opposite, opposing such denigration and targeting of people just because they hold different beliefs."
Carano further has claimed Disney's and Lucasfilm's actions have resulted in her being blacklisted in Hollywood.
In response to the lawsuit, Disney sought to jettison Carano's claims.
The company had argued it was actually Carano's lawsuit that was the threat to the First Amendment. They asserted a ruling for Carano would unconstitutionally limit its ability to hire and fire creative talent and force the company to affiliate with speech and political and social opinions it finds distasteful.
The judge called Disney's interpretation of the First Amendment dangerous, noting it would give companies like Disney wide powers to police the political views and First Amendment activities of workers.
The judge also blocked Disney's attempted appeal, saying the case was not yet ready for an appeal.
In the months after those rulings, Disney and Carano sparred in court over Carano's demands for access to documents, with Carano's team accusing Disney of attempting to slow-walk the case and drag it out.
