The drama and controversies culminating in the poor box-office opening of Walt Disney Studios’ live-action “Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs” is just one of several difficult moments that the Mouse has endured in recent years.
Disney’s cultural cache has taken a major hit within the last five years as it has picked high-stakes political fights with state governments, fired stars for outspoken conservative beliefs, and injected sexual and gender-identity themes into several of its family-targeted films.
Here are four more controversies in addition to Disney’s rocky “Snow White” premiere that have soured many people on the long-running studio.
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Disney axes popular ‘Star Wars’ star over politics
The entertainment behemoth fired actress Gina Carano from its flagship Disney+ Star Wars series, “The Mandalorian,” in 2021 after she expressed her political views on social media.
Carano, who played mercenary character Cara Dune in the series, was let go after the second season of the show after she generated social media outrage with her post comparing the divided political environment in America at the time to Nazi Germany.
Carano was one of the show’s stand-out performers, alongside series lead Pedro Pascal. With Disney’s decision, the actress did not return for season three of the show. Despite some social media users being displeased with her post, others were outraged on her behalf, arguing that the studio fired her simply because her posts leaned more conservative.
When word got out about the firing, “CancelDisneyPlus” began trending on social media, with some users providing proof they had canceled their Disney+ streaming accounts.
Following her exit, Carano vowed to sue Disney for wrongful termination over her political views. She has accused the company of firing her over “refusing to support movements and ideologies with which she did not agree,” including Black Lives Matter, COVID lockdowns and sharing pronouns.
After three years of waiting to get back at her former employer, a Los Angeles federal judge ruled in 2024 that the actress’s lawsuit could move forward, denying Disney’s motion to dismiss the case.
DeSantis defeats Disney
Disney was dealt another blow in 2024 after its years-long legal battle against the DeSantis administration ended in defeat. Gov. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., moved to dissolve the company’s self-governing status of the formally titled Reedy Creek Improvement District that encompasses the Walt Disney World Resort in 2022 and triumphed.
The lengthy litigation ended with the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District voting to approve a settlement between both parties that invalidated the company’s claims to act as its own separate government over the territory that its amusement park encompassed. The settlement also ended any litigation between the two parties still pending in Florida state court.
The settlement was a huge setback for the media company, especially as many outlets had predicted that DeSantis would be the big loser in the stand-off.
DeSantis made the first move in the legal fight following Disney’s aggressive criticism of Florida’s Parental Rights in Education Act. The bill, which bans Florida school employees or third parties from giving classroom instruction on “sexual orientation” or “gender identity” in kindergarten through third grade, was promoted and signed into law by the governor.
The bill’s critics in the media torched the legislation, dubbing it the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. Disney CEO Bob Chapek, at the behest of his company, echoed the criticism, publicly condemning the law.
“We were opposed to the bill from the outset, but we chose not to take a public position on it because we thought we could be more effective working behind the scenes, working with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle,” he said.
“I called Gov. DeSantis this morning to express our disappointment and concern that if the legislation becomes law, it could be used to unfairly target gay, lesbian, non-binary, and transgender kids and families,” he said, kicking off the feud between Disney and the Florida government.
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Leaked meetings show Disney pushing “gay agenda”
In response to the DeSantis-endorsed Parental Rights in Education Act, the Walt Disney company appeared to implement an aggressive pro-LGBTQ agenda among its staff and its content.
Leaked videos shared by conservative anti-woke journalist Christopher Rufo on social media in 2022 revealed an internal Disney “all-hands” meeting where company officials discussed “adding queerness” to its children’s programming, promoting gender-neutral language at Disney theme parks, and demonized members of the DeSantis administration.
In one of the leaked clips, one Disney team member revealed that some teams at Disney have implemented an openly “gay agenda.” In another video, Disney’s Diversity and Inclusion Manager Vivian Ware explains to employees that the company is ditching the words ladies, gentlemen, boys, and girls in its theme parks in order to not alienate transgender children.
In a third clip, an LGBT activist accuses Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and his press secretary Christina Pushaw of trying to “erase” LGBT employees at Disney.
Disney corporate president Karey Burke was also shown saying that she would like to see at least 50% of Disney’s characters in the future identify as LGBT or a racial minority.
Disney exec’s close ties with Kamala Harris scrutinized after debate
The relationship between Disney senior executive Dana Walden and former Vice President Kamala Harris made waves following the U.S. presidential debate between the then-vice president and then-GOP candidate Donald Trump.
After critics accused ABC News – which is owned by the Walt Disney Company – of showing bias towards Harris by appearing to fact-check more of Trump’s statements made during the debate, some wondered whether Walden and the ex-vice president’s friendship could have tipped the scales in Harris’ favor.
Walden, whose portfolio includes ABC News, is one of Harris’ “extraordinary friends,” according to a report in The New York Times. Walden and Harris have known each other since 1994, while their husbands, Matt Walden and Doug Emhoff, have known each other since the 1980s.
Days after the debate, Variety confronted her about the insinuation of her high-profile friendship affecting ABC’s treatment of Harris.
“I have the highest regard for everyone at ABC News. It’s the most professional organization, the most top-notch journalists,” she replied. “It doesn’t really dignify much of a response.”
Several of Disney’s films with openly gay characters bomb
Disney movies featuring some of the studio’s first openly gay characters and scenes made for some box office bombs in 2022.
Disney’s Pixar summer offering that year, “Lightyear” – based off the beloved “Toy Story” character – disappointed with a $51 million box office debut. The film was predicted to earn $70 million. However, stiff competition from that year’s “Jurassic World” installment as well as the box office smash “Top Gun: Maverick” hurt its debut.
Coincidentally, the film features a lesbian kiss between Hawthorne, a female lead voiced by Uzo Aduba, and another female character. The kiss generated backlash from critics, which was met with condemnation from the film’s lead, Chris Evans.
“The real truth is those people are idiots,” Evans said during an interview with Reuters Television. “There’s always going to be people who are afraid and unaware and trying to hold on to what was before. But those people die off like dinosaurs. I think the goal is to pay them no mind, march forward and embrace the growth that makes us human.”
Disney’s “Strange World” opened that fall to an underwhelming box office performance, earning only $28 million during its Thanksgiving weekend debut. The movie, which features an “openly LGBTQ+ teenaged Disney character talking about his crush, went on to lose $197 million total, making it the worst-performing Hollywood film that year.
Conservative film critics, like Christian Toto, told Fox News Digital that the film’s pro-LGBTQ messaging might have contributed to the bomb.
“Hollywood doesn’t fully grasp the ‘go woke, go broke’ mantra,” he said. “In some cases, parents are avoiding content with sexual conversations. Parents are [savvier] today. They use social media and get feedback on films from their peers either online or in person.”
