Actress Scarlett Johansson sues Disney for breach of contract. The company broadcast her superhero movie Black Widow on its streaming services at the same time as its cinematic release.
In its first weekend the film grossed $218m (£157m), setting a box office record for the coronavirus pandemic. However, revenue then took a sharp fall as the film became available on streaming service Disney+. Ms Johansson argues it deprived her of potential earnings.
Responding to the allegations, Disney say Ms Johansson’s case has “no merit whatsoever”, and had “fully complied” with her contract.
However, Ms Johansson argues that Marvel Studios, which is owned by Disney, promised a “theatrical release” for Black Widow. In her understanding it meant a period of time, traditionally 90 days, passing before availability on streaming.
As cinemas were forced to close during the pandemic, many Hollywood studios chose to bypass this route and go straight to releasing their films online instead. Although most cinemas are open again, Disney and Warner Bros opt to keep a dual release strategy for big films.
On its opening weekend, Black Widow took in ticket sales of around $80m in North America and a further $78m internationally. In addition, at least $60m came from Disney+ Premier Access rentals.
The actress’ salary for the film is based on box office performance, and according to reports, she lost around $50m.
In their defence, Disney claim that the dual release strategy “significantly enhanced [Johansson’s] ability to earn additional compensation on top of the $20m she has received to date”. It describes her legal action as “especially sad and distressing in its callous disregard for the horrific and prolonged global effects of the Covid-19 pandemic”.
‘A real bait and switch’
Prior to the pandemic, film fans usually had to watch new Hollywood releases at the cinema, or wait three months for streaming on devices.
But now cinemas are struggling to win back viewers who are wary of the virus spreading in confined indoor spaces. This has led to major studios having to mix cinema releases and streaming in different ways.
However, a number of the film industry’s leading talents, including director Christopher Nolan, are not pleased by the move. The film maker criticised Warner Bros last year for their plans to release major movies on HBO Max. He described the situation as “a real bait and switch”. In his words, Warner Bros is currently “dismantling” the “incredible machine” it had “for getting a film-maker’s work out everywhere, both in theatres and in the home”. He believes the “decision makes no economic sense”.
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