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Scarlett Johansson Sues Disney over ‘Black Widow’ Streaming Release

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Re: Scarlett Johansson Sues Disney over ‘Black Widow’ Streaming Release

#41

Post by csydas »

bilbo0s wrote: post #17
themodelplumber wrote: post #3

> Ms. Johansson said in the suit that her agreement with Disney’s Marvel Entertainment guaranteed an exclusive theatrical release, and her salary was based in large part on the box-office performance of the film. Meanwhile, the film was released to stream simultaneously with the box office release. Ouch.

Sounds like she had people negotiating for her who failed to recognize the full weight of the pandemic's lasting repercussions. Who knows? They may have even negotiated this deal before the severity of the pandemic was plain? Whatever the case may be, it's a teachable moment. You almost have to have "continuous wargaming" to sort out ongoing effects the pandemic may have on your business.

>They may have even negotiated this deal before the severity of the pandemic was plain?

>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Widow_(2021_film)

The talks for this began in 2017, so undoubtedly it was negotiated at that time before any real work on the film was done.

So very likely, Disney is in the wrong here but I suppose it's for the courts to assess such a thing, or for Disney to find a way to make the issue go away

Re: Scarlett Johansson Sues Disney over ‘Black Widow’ Streaming Release

#42

Post by gnicholas »

calmd wrote: post #10

This makes sense. A lot of stars expect a cut of box office revenues and negotiate that in. But the negotiations happened probably prior to the pandemic and the new situation probably was unthinkable. Also the box office in general has been destroyed recently because of the pandemic. What would have likely been $+150M opening weekends and close to $1B totals revenue (or even more) are reduced to fractions of that. ED…

> But the negotiations happened probably prior to the pandemic and the new situation probably was unthinkable.

Apparently Warner dealt with this unexpected issue differently:

> WarnerMedia chose to renegotiate many of its talent contracts that, like Ms. Johansson’s deal with Marvel, were tied to box-office performance. Warner Bros. paid more than $200 million to talent as part of the amended agreements.

Re: Scarlett Johansson Sues Disney over ‘Black Widow’ Streaming Release

#43

Post by [deleted] »

silicon2401 wrote: post #19
tajustice wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Mind not using the term "blacklist"? It's racist and othering, ties negativity to Blacks and other PoCs. "Blocklist" and "denylist" are better terms that are neutral and more descriptive.

Please don't refer to people as "blacks" and "pocs". That's racist as it boils people down to their most superficial trait. I'm being sincere.

[deleted]

Re: Scarlett Johansson Sues Disney over ‘Black Widow’ Streaming Release

#44

Post by elmo2you »

bilbo0s wrote: post #17
themodelplumber wrote: post #3

> Ms. Johansson said in the suit that her agreement with Disney’s Marvel Entertainment guaranteed an exclusive theatrical release, and her salary was based in large part on the box-office performance of the film. Meanwhile, the film was released to stream simultaneously with the box office release. Ouch.

Sounds like she had people negotiating for her who failed to recognize the full weight of the pandemic's lasting repercussions. Who knows? They may have even negotiated this deal before the severity of the pandemic was plain? Whatever the case may be, it's a teachable moment. You almost have to have "continuous wargaming" to sort out ongoing effects the pandemic may have on your business.

These negotiation most likely precede the pandemic, considering the original planned release for May 2020. Regardless though, a deal was struck and no pandemic or other unforeseen circumstances will change that contract unless it is renegotiated in mutual agreement.

Disney may argue why it deviated from their contractual obligations, and some of that might sound reasonable in light of the pandemic reality. But that doesn't change that they still violated their contract.

Doing business is a lot of taking (calculated) risks and trying to make a profit that way. Contracts exist to protect the interests of those involved. Of course Disney couldn't foresee the pandemic, but they still made a calculated risk by locking something down in a contract. From that moment on, they were stuck to their deal. If reality made that a tough pill to swallow, tough luck. That's the risk of doing business.

Re: Scarlett Johansson Sues Disney over ‘Black Widow’ Streaming Release

#45

Post by anigbrowl »

calmd wrote: post #10

This makes sense. A lot of stars expect a cut of box office revenues and negotiate that in. But the negotiations happened probably prior to the pandemic and the new situation probably was unthinkable. Also the box office in general has been destroyed recently because of the pandemic. What would have likely been $+150M opening weekends and close to $1B totals revenue (or even more) are reduced to fractions of that. ED…

Not hard at all, actually. All stars have very savvy agents and lawyers, and the movie industry has always been a cutthroat business. Don't let the glitz and glamor blind you to the fact that it is an industry which selects for people who work very long hours and drive hard bargains, at every level.

Every professional contract I've ever seen contemplates expansion into future media and markets; it's a technology driven business that has to follow customers to where they are going, and industry lawyers are fully aware that if studios or production companies had the option, most of them would happily relocate to the Moon or Mars to avoid paying out, while maintaining an office on earth to litigate their own copyright interests.

Re: Scarlett Johansson Sues Disney over ‘Black Widow’ Streaming Release

#46

Post by sto_hristo »

gnicholas wrote: post #9

Pretty damning email: > In a March 2019 email included in the suit, Marvel Chief Counsel Dave Galluzzi said the release would be according to a traditional theatrical model, adding, “We understand that should the plan change, we would need to discuss this with you and come to an understanding as the deal is based on a series of (very large) box office bonuses.” UPDATE: just realized that she's suing Disney and this q…

"Said". Good luck with "said" in the court.

Movie was bad nevertheless.

Re: Scarlett Johansson Sues Disney over ‘Black Widow’ Streaming Release

#47

Post by tehwebguy »

Robotbeat wrote: post #34
bilbo0s wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sounds like she had people negotiating for her who failed to recognize the full weight of the pandemic's lasting repercussions. Who knows? They may have even negotiated this deal before the severity of the pandemic was plain? Whatever the case may be, it's a teachable moment. You almost have to have "continuous wargaming" to sort out ongoing effects the pandemic may have on your business.

Disney lied about it. They said they would renegotiate with her if plans changed about theatrical release, and then when plans changed, they didn’t renegotiate. (The contract was signed WELL before the pandemic.)

I would bet Scarlett Johansson's net worth that her contract included an "entire agreement" clause.

That said, I hope she gets what is fair. The only reason actors / directors get box office gross deals is that studios have absolutely mastered the art of defrauding everyone on net deals and now with streaming it's even worse:

- Now 100% of the release marketing (which reduces net profit) pushes the streaming service as an option next to theaters

- Streaming service is massive LTV & branding value that benefits only Disney

Re: Scarlett Johansson Sues Disney over ‘Black Widow’ Streaming Release

#48

Post by CydeWeys »

sto_hristo wrote: post #46
gnicholas wrote: post #9

Pretty damning email: > In a March 2019 email included in the suit, Marvel Chief Counsel Dave Galluzzi said the release would be according to a traditional theatrical model, adding, “We understand that should the plan change, we would need to discuss this with you and come to an understanding as the deal is based on a series of (very large) box office bonuses.” UPDATE: just realized that she's suing Disney and this q…

"Said". Good luck with "said" in the court. Movie was bad nevertheless.

It's in an email. Why would that be problematic for court?

Re: Scarlett Johansson Sues Disney over ‘Black Widow’ Streaming Release

#49

Post by ethbr0 »

gnicholas wrote: post #9

Pretty damning email: > In a March 2019 email included in the suit, Marvel Chief Counsel Dave Galluzzi said the release would be according to a traditional theatrical model, adding, “We understand that should the plan change, we would need to discuss this with you and come to an understanding as the deal is based on a series of (very large) box office bonuses.” UPDATE: just realized that she's suing Disney and this q…

Oof. A clear statement like that from a lawyer... and then not doing the thing they themselves said they would need to do?

Someone had an unfortunate day when that email surfaced in court filings.

Re: Scarlett Johansson Sues Disney over ‘Black Widow’ Streaming Release

#50

Post by echelon »

calmd wrote: post #6
ricopags wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Knowing nothing at all about the industry from an insider perspective, my outsider surmise is maybe a lesser star in this situation would be. But Scarlett Johansson is the highest grossing female 'bankable'[0] star and as such even if Disney might not want to work with her, I doubt she will ever be wanting for work. >Expect her ROI to jump after the box-office takes of "Black Widow" are tallied. ope. I think the disp…

The problem is if Disney blacklists her from its main franchises, Star Wars and Marvel and Pixar/Disney animation films, that is more than half of the box office these days. The box office is I think 50% super hero films now. That said I think they won't...

Maybe it was a bad idea to let Disney own almost every major studio and franchise.
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