Walt Disney Company CEO Bob Chapek publicly addressed the firing of Gina Carano for the first time during an annual shareholders’ meeting, denying an accusation that the removal of the actress from the Disney+ “Star Wars” series “The Mandalorian” had anything to do with her conservative politics. As published in The Hollywood Reporter: “Chapek said the decision was not about politics but about ‘values that are universal’ and that the company wants to make content ‘reflective of the rich diversity of the world that we live in.'”
Deadline’s report on the shareholders’ meeting noted that Chapek said he doesn’t “really see Disney as characterizing itself as left-leaning or right-leaning.” One stockholder asked the CEO about “the Disney black list,” noting that both Carano and co-star Pedro Pascal had social media posts referencing Nazi Germany but only Carano was fired.
As Deadline reports: “Chapek didn’t speak to the Carano incident directly but said Disney stands ‘for values that are universal: respect, decency, integrity and inclusion and we seek to have the content that we make reflective of the rich diversity of the world we live in. And I think that’s a world we should all live in harmony and peace.'”
Lucasfilm announced February 10 it was firing Carano over controversial social media posts, the last of which before her removal compared the current U.S. political climate to Nazi Germany. The actress starred as Cara Dune in the first two seasons of “The Mandalorian.” A Lucasfilm spokesperson said at the time that Carano’s “social media posts denigrating people based on their cultural and religious identities are abhorrent and unacceptable.” Lucasfilm later confirmed to IndieWire that the role of Cara Dune would not be recast moving forward.
In the month since Carano was fired, few people with ties to Lucasfilm, “The Mandalorian,” or The Walt Disney Company have publicly issued statements regarding the matter. “Mandalorian” star Pedro Pascal has been silent on Carano’s firing, as have creatives Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni. Prior to Chapek, only Carano’s “Mandalorian” co-star Bill Burr spoke of her firing.
“She was an absolute sweetheart. Super nice fucking person,” Burr said about Carano on a recent episode of “The Bill Bert Podcast,” while adding, “I’m on that fucking show. Now, I gotta watch what the fuck I say.”
“The Mandalorian” Season 3 will not go into production until after Lucasfilm wraps the spinoff project “The Book of Boba Fett,” which is set to air in December. Carano, meanwhile, has announced she is developing and starring in a new feature film with the conservative website The Daily Wire.
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