Gina Carano as Cara Dune in “The Mandalorian” Justin Lubin/Lucasfilm Ltd.
Gina Carano is fighting back against Disney and Lucasfilm three years after she was let go from the Disney+ series The Mandalorian.
The actress, 41, filed a lawsuit against the companies on Tuesday, February 6, claiming she was discriminated against for sharing her political views and was wrongfully terminated as a result, according to multiple outlets. The lawsuit is being funded by X owner Elon Musk in an effort to legally support people fighting against discrimination for posts shared on the social media platform.
In February 2021, a spokesperson announced that Carano would not be returning as her Mandalorian character, Cara Dune, in future episodes. She was subsequently let go by the UTA Agency after posting controversial Instagram Stories comparing modern-day Republicans to Jewish people in the Holocaust. Carano also reportedly used her social media platform to criticize government mask mandates during the COVID-19 pandemic and allege that voter fraud affected the outcome of the 2020 presidential election, among other comments.
In Carano’s lawsuit, she claims she was asked by Disney to issue an apology and meet with a representative of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Discrimination following her comments, which she refused. After declining to meet with Lucasfilm president, Kathleen Kennedy, and 45 company employees who identify as LGBTQ+, Carano says she was let go from the Star Wars franchise.
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Carano alleges that Disney proceeded to begin a “post-termination smear campaign” against her as a result of not conforming to the company’s views, which included excluding her in marketing material for an episode of Running Wild with Bear Grylls.
Claiming she was discriminated against for her religious beliefs and opinions on issues such as preferred pronouns and the Black Lives Matter movement, Carano accused the companies of upholding double standards. According to multiple outlets, the lawsuit cites a tweet from Carano’s The Mandalorian costar Pedro Pascal, claiming he faced no consequences for an alleged tweet comparing former president Donald Trump to Hitler.
Carano is seeking $75,000 and additional damages, as well as a court order forcing Lucasfilm to recast her as Cara Dune.
Us Weekly reached out to Disney and Lucasfilm for comment but did not hear back by the time of publication.
Carano addressed the lawsuit in a lengthy X post on Tuesday, writing, “I was being hunted down from everything I posted to every post I like because I was not in line with the acceptable narrative at 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.”
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She went on to thank Musk, 52, and X “for giving me an opportunity to bring my case to light,” as well as “all the people who have supported me & made your voices heard.”
In a Tuesday statement, X’s head of business operations, Joe Benarroch, wrote that the platform was “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.”
