In an interview with foreign media, “Dune” director Denis Villeneuve stated his position in the “Black Widow” lawsuit: supporting Scarlett, the former Marvel actress.
On July 19th, Hollywood actor Scarlett Johansson filed a lawsuit against Disney, accusing it of breaching the contract by distributing the movie “Black Widow” starring him in theaters and streaming media Disney+ at the same time.
Disney has promised that the movie will be shown in “theatrical lines”, which generally means exclusive release in theaters.
Scarlett’s remuneration mainly comes from the movie’s box office dividends, and Disney’s move is estimated to cost her $50 million.
Recently, Disney intends to change this lawsuit to arbitration, hoping to prevent the case from being heard publicly to attract public attention.
Scarlett accused Disney of “trying to cover up its improper behavior,” and said that this strategy discriminates against women.
In the current situation, Denis Villeneuve is unabashedly on the side of the widow sister.
At the same time, he said that he hopes to include the atrical exclusively clause in future film contracts.
In addition, he believes that Disney’s pessimistic view of big screen movies is wrong.
“The industry is undergoing a roller coaster-like development, which runs counter to Wall Street’s desire for stability. These platforms (such as Disney+, Netflix and other online streaming media platforms-Editor’s Note) subscriptions provide studios with a fixed income. I am not against it. Platforms, on the contrary, they are extraordinary tools for us to understand film memories. But the film business must first start on the big screen. From now on, I will also require my films to be shown only in theaters in accordance with the contract.”
Last year, because of the pandemic caused the downturn of theaters in North America, Warner announced that in 2021, 17 movies will be launched on theaters and streaming on the same day.
This offends many Hollywood filmmakers and directors.
Denis Villeneuve published an editorial in the magazine, criticizing Warner’s decision.
Christopher Nolan (“Tenet”, “Interstellar”) expressed his disappointment.
There are signs that he is seeking to cooperate with another film company and sever the long-term relationship with Warner Bros. Pictures.
Movie stars such as Denzel Washington, Will Smith, and Keanu Reeves also accused the move of affecting their box office.
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