In early 2021, actress Gina Carano was fired from her role on Disney+’s hit The Mandalorian over a series of controversial social media posts. Now, the actress is suing The Walt Disney Company over a wrongful termination claim.
As The Hollywood Reporter notes, Carano began tweeting and posting anti-masking and anti-vaccination messages during the COVID pandemic, as well as anti-Black Lives Matter and Trans Rights messages, then supported Donald Trump's claim of a rigged 2020 election, and eventually, in February 2021, posted "a photo of a terrified Jewish woman being chased by a boy holding a bat during the Holocaust."
With that, public backlash began along with the #FireGinaCarano campaign. Carano's talent agency and law firm both dropped her. Disney seems to have agreed, as she was fired from the show shortly after.
But now, Carano is leveraging an obscure California labor code called Section 1101 to sue the entertainment giant. Section 1101 blocks employers from creating rules “forbidding or preventing employees from engaging or participating in politics or from becoming candidates for public office” or “controlling or directing, or tending to control or direct the political activities or affiliations of employees.”
“No one really focuses on protecting political activities without employer interference, and it really is a reflection of California’s extensive employee rights,” Natalie Pierce, head of Gunderson Dettmer’s employment and labor practice, told LegalDive.
Meanwhile, Tom Spiggle of The Spiggle Law Firm, added that scant precedent stands on the code. “Employers don’t want to get into this; they’re not watching where you go,” he continued. “We’ve never had somebody walk into our office, say they went to this event and were fired.”
The Musk Factor
Funding Carano's suit against the Mouse is Elon Musk. In August of last year, Musk posted to X that "if you were unfairly treated by your employer due to posting or liking something on this platform” he would pay the legal bills.
Seems Carano took him up on that offer. As CNBC reports, the actress posted to X, “I would like to express my deepest gratitude & thank you to @ElonMusk & @X for giving me an opportunity to bring my case to light."
THE VERDICT:
Seemed a matter of time until this corner of California employment law was explored. Musk, Carano, and Disney definitely make a high-profile trio to add to the case law. What's more, it stands to reason that many more celebrities will begin to voice their political beliefs depending on how the verdict lands.
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