Elon Musk Continues Disney Feud, Funds Mandalorian Lawsuit

Tom Jowitt,
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Lawsuit by Gina Carano against Disney over her firing from ‘The Mandalorian’, is supported with funding from Elon Musk’s X

Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) is providing financial support for a lawsuit against Disney, as Musk’s feud with the entertainment company continues.

Reuters reported that actress Gina Carano is suing Disney for wrongful termination from the Star Wars series “The Mandalorian.”

The lawsuit was filed on Tuesday, and is backed by Elon Musk.

It comes after Musk in November 2023 had made his infamous appearance at the 2023 DealBook Summit, where he told advertisers who had suspended campaigns on X to “go [expletive] yourself.”

Image credit: Elon Musk
Image credit: Elon Musk

Disney feud

Musk then slowly reiterated: “Go. [Expletive]. Yourself.” “Is that clear? Hey Bob, if you’re in the audience, that’s how I feel.”

Disney chief executive Bob Iger had spoken at the summit earlier in the day.

Disney was one of the major advertisers that had joined an advertising boycott of X, after it was alleged that Twitter was continuing to display extremist content alongside adverts from big brand names.

Musk doubled down on his tirade against Disney’s Iger in December 2023, when he publicly tweeted that Iger “should be fired immediately.”

Gina Carano

Now Reuters has reported that the lawsuit from actress Gina Carano against Walt Disney is being backed by Elon Musk.

Carano reportedly argued in the lawsuit that she was fired in 2021 for voicing conservative opinions on a number of social media platforms including Twitter.

“A short time ago in a galaxy not so far away, Defendants made it clear that only one orthodoxy in thought, speech, or action was acceptable in their empire,” Reuters quoted the lawsuit as saying, which was filed in federal court in California.

Carano also claimed sex discrimination, arguing that male stars who voiced opinions did not suffer any consequences.

Carano played warrior Cara Dune and was a popular cast member with fans of the Mandalorian.

According to Reuters, Carano is asking the court to order Disney’s Lucasfilm unit to reinstate her in the role and seeks compensatory damages of up to $75,000 plus emotional distress and punitive damages to be determined at trial.

A Disney spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment, Reuters reported.

Musk backing

According to Reuters, Musk has previously stated on X that he would fund legal action by users who faced retaliation from employers for comments on the platform.

“As a sign of X Corp’s commitment to free speech, we’re 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,” Joe Benarroch, X’s head of business operations was quoted by Reuters as saying.

Disney had removed Carano from “The Mandalorian” over a social media post in which she compared being a Republican to being Jewish during the Holocaust.

Carano had previously been criticsed for Twitter posts in which she derided mask-wearing during the Covid-19 pandemic, and echoed false claims of voter fraud during the 2020 presidential election.

Carano in a post on X said that she was fired because she was “not in line with the acceptable narrative of 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.”