Disney CEO weighs in on Scarlett Johansson controversy: Our talent is our most important asset
Scarlett Johansson sues Disney Photograph:( X )
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At a conference recently, Disney CEO Bob Chapek what he thinks of the compensation of Hollywood talent would be going foward in the wake of Scarlett Johansson controversry and he weighed on a list of things including hs important it is to understand that these are special circumstances where we all must adapt (talking of the COVID-19 pandemic).
At a conference recently, Disney CEO Bob Chapek what he thinks of the compensation of Hollywood talent would be going foward in the wake of Scarlett Johansson controversry and he weighed on a list of things including hs important it is to understand that these are special circumstances where we all must adapt (talking of the COVID-19 pandemic).
In as many words as possible Disney confronted publicly the controversy with their Black Widow actress Scarlett Johansson who sued the studio for cutting her money by making the film available both in theatres and their streamer simultaneously.
At the Goldman Sachs’ 30th annual Communacopia Conference, Disney CEO Bob Chapek was asked about the compensation of Hollywood talent going forward in the wake of Scarlett Johansson controversy. He said, “Disney has had a long history of having very symbiotic and cooperative deals with the talent and we will continue to.”
“Certainly the world is changing, and the talent deals going forward will have to reflect the fact that the world is changing. We’re in a moment of time where films were envisioned under one understanding about what the world would be, because frankly it hadn’t changed much,” he said.
He added, “Remember, those films were made three or four years ago; those deals were cut three or four years ago. Then they get launched in the middle of a global pandemic where that pandemic itself is accelerating a second dynamic, which is this changing consumer behavior. So we’re sort of putting a square peg in a round hole right now where we’ve got a deal conceived under a certain set of conditions, that actually results in a movie that is being released in a completely different set of conditions.”
“So there’s a bit of rest going on right now. Ultimately, we’ll think about that as we do our future talent deals and plan for that and make sure that’s incorporated. But right now we have this sort of middle position, where we’re trying to do right by the talent, I think the talent is trying to do right by us, and we’re just figuring out our way to bridge the gap. Ultimately we believe our talent is our most important asset, and we’ll continue to believe that, and as we always have, we’ll compensate them fairly per the terms of the contract that they agreed to us with,” he continued.
Disney had bashed Scarlett Johansson when she sued them for eating up her money and said it was insensitive of the actress to ask for the film to be available only in theatres amid the pandemic when most people are not comfortable walking out of their homes because of the COVID-19 situation. Scarlett Johansson has 'no plans' to return as 'Black Widow'
Disney had then said, “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. Disney has fully complied with Ms. Johansson’s contract and furthermore, the release of Black Widow on Disney+ with Premier Access has significantly enhanced her ability to earn additional compensation on top of the $20M she has received to date.”
