Disney Readies for Talent Deal 'Reset' Following 'Black Widow' Lawsuit

Samson Amore

Samson Amore is a reporter for dot.LA. He holds a degree in journalism from Emerson College and previously covered technology and entertainment for TheWrap and reported on the SoCal startup scene for the Los Angeles Business Journal. Send tips or pitches to samsonamore@dot.la and find him on Twitter @Samsonamore.

Disney Readies for Talent Deal 'Reset' Following 'Black Widow' Lawsuit

Disney CEO Bob Chapek acknowledged the ongoing tensions developing among high-profile talent and studios that have put their blockbusters on streaming channels instead of releasing them first in theaters.

"The talent deals going forward will have to reflect the fact that the world's changing," Chapek said, speaking virtually at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia Conference. "There's a bit of a reset going on right now."


"Black Widow" star Scarlett Johansson sued Disney in July for releasing the film directly to Disney Plus instead of theaters, and argued that was a breach of her contract. Chapek didn't reference the lawsuit or name Johannson directly, but he implied it could change how Disney does business.

Johannson was to be compensated based on box office performance and could have lost up to $50 million from the movie skipping theaters, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Chapek said that many of the deals brokered with stars were done so before the pandemic altered the theatrical window.

"So we're sort of putting a square peg in a round hole right now, where we've got a deal that's conceived under a certain set of conditions," he said.

"We'll think about that as we do our future talent deals and plan for that, and make sure that that's incorporated. But right now we've got sort of this middle position where we're trying to do right by talent," Chapek added.

The dispute is unfolding amid larger concerns for Disney. Chapek warned investors that Disney Plus subscriber growth is likely to slow in the fourth quarter adding users in the "low single-digit millions" as pandemic-fueled production delays limited their movie debuts.

Coronavirus pandemic lockdowns and regulations put a massive strain on Disney's ability to churn out content for its streamers at the rate it typically targets and it has also thrown a wrench in their theatrical release schedule.

"COVID-induced production delays is a kink in the supply chain for new content," Chapek said, adding that "this is short term."

He reported Disney has 61 movies and 17 shows in production right now. The Disney TV division has over 200 active productions globally.

Former NBC Studios president and UCLA School of Theater, Film and TV Lecturer Tom Nunan said production delays are standard for an industry reeling from the pandemic.

"The production footprint around the world has been forever changed by COVID," Nunan said. He added there's a sort of post-coronavirus "hangover from just the obscene kind of buying that consumers went on (subscribing to streaming services) during the height of the pandemic, here and abroad," as people begin to resume normal life.

Nunan said it was surprising Disney only had 200 global TV productions active given the number of properties they own across film and television.

Disney shares closed down 4.17% on Tuesday.

The company reports fourth quarter earnings Nov. 11.

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Astrolab's New SpaceX-backed Rover Could Change Space Exploration Forever

Lon Harris
Lon Harris is a contributor to dot.LA. His work has also appeared on ScreenJunkies, RottenTomatoes and Inside Streaming.
Astrolab's New SpaceX-backed Rover Could Change Space Exploration Forever
Photo by Samson Amore

This is the web version of dot.LA’s daily newsletter. Sign up to get the latest news on Southern California’s tech, startup and venture capital scene.

Local Los Angeles-area startup Astrolab Inc. has designed a new lunar vehicle called FLEX, short for Flexible Logistics and Exploration Rover. About the size of a Jeep Wrangler, FLEX is designed to move cargo around the surface of the moon on assignment. It’s a bit larger than NASA’s Mars rovers, like Perseverance, but as it’s designed for transport and mobility rather than precision measurement, it can travel much faster, at speeds of up to 15 miles per hour across the lunar surface.

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Meet the Creator Economy’s Version of LinkedIn

Kristin Snyder

Kristin Snyder is dot.LA's 2022/23 Editorial Fellow. She previously interned with Tiger Oak Media and led the arts section for UCLA's Daily Bruin.

Meet the Creator Economy’s Version of LinkedIn
Creatorland

This is the web version of dot.LA’s daily newsletter. Sign up to get the latest news on Southern California’s tech, startup and venture capital scene.

LinkedIn hasn’t caught on with Gen Z—in fact, 96% rarely use their existing account.

Considering 25% of young people want to be full-time content creators and most influencers aren’t active on LinkedIn, traditional networking sites aren’t likely to meet these needs.

Enter CreatorLand.

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This Week in ‘Raises’: Total Network Services Gains $9M, Autio Secures $5.9M

Decerry Donato

Decerry Donato is a reporter at dot.LA. Prior to that, she was an editorial fellow at the company. Decerry received her bachelor's degree in literary journalism from the University of California, Irvine. She continues to write stories to inform the community about issues or events that take place in the L.A. area. On the weekends, she can be found hiking in the Angeles National forest or sifting through racks at your local thrift store.

This Week in ‘Raises’: Total Network Services Gains $9M, Autio Secures $5.9M
This Week in ‘Raises’:

It has been a slow week in funding, but a local decentralized computing network managed to land $9 million to accelerate deployment of its new product called Universal Communication Identifier (UCID™). Another local company that secured capital included Kevin Costner’s location-based audio storytelling platform and the funding will go toward expanding the app’s content library and expanding into additional regions in the United States.

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