Entertainment
Scarlett Johansson returns to work on Asteroid City set after settling Disney lawsuit over Black Widow out of court
Scarlett Johansson was all smile while filming Asteroid City (Picture: Mega)
Scarlett Johansson has plenty to smile about as she was pictured on the set of Wes Anderson’s new movie, Asteroid City, after settling her Black Widow lawsuit with Disney.
The 36-year-old actress sued Walt Disney Studios earlier this year, alleging the company breached its contract with her by releasing Marvel blockbuster Black Widow on its streaming platform, Disney Plus, rather than having an exclusive theatrical release.
However, the legal dispute has been settled out of court and now the Lucy actress is focused on her new project, which also stars Adrien Brody, Bryan Cranston and Jeff Goldblum.
The stars were pictured working on the mystery project in Madrid, Spain after Bill Murray let the title slip during London Film Festival over the weekend.
Earlier this month, the Don Jon star revealed she had settled with Disney in a statement that read: ‘I am happy to have resolved our differences. I’m incredibly proud of the work we’ve done together over the years and have greatly enjoyed my creative relationship with the team. I look forward to continuing our collaboration in years to come.’
Alan Bergman, chairman of Walt Disney Studios, added: ‘We appreciate her contributions to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and look forward to working together on a number of upcoming projects, including Disney’s Tower of Terror.’
The actress was pictured heading to location as filming takes place in Madrid (Picture: Mega Agency)
Not much is known about the Wes Anderson project other than the title (Picture: Mega Agency)
Terms of the settlement were not disclosed by either party.
Johansson played the character of Black Widow in eight Marvel films, including the Avengers series before the standalone movie was released in July.
As well as starring in the movie, Johansson also served as a producer and her potential earnings were tied to its box office performance.
The actress is rocking platinum blonde hair for her role (Picture: Mega Agency)
Disney opted for a hybrid release when cinemas in major markets remained closed due to the Covid pandemic.
Following a delay in release of more than a year due to the pandemic, Black Widow earned more than $378million (£280m) at the box office – a chunk of which came from Disney Plus.
The Hollywood star famously played Black Widow in eight movies (Picture: AP)
It was later revealed that Johansson had been paid $20million (£14.9m) for the film.
Originally responding to the lawsuit, a Disney spokesperson said in a stinging statement previously: ‘There is no merit whatsoever to this filing. The lawsuit is especially sad and distressing in its callous disregard for the horrific and prolonged global effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The actress said she was ‘happy’ to settle her recent lawsuit with Disney over the film’s release (Picture: Rex Features)
‘Disney has fully complied with Ms. Johansson’s contract and furthermore, the release of Black Widow on Disney+ with Premier Access has significantly enhanced her ability to earn additional compensation on top of the $20M she has received to date.’
In response, Johansson’s lawyer John Berlinski said: ‘After initially responding to this litigation with a misogynistic attack against Scarlett Johansson, Disney is now, predictably, trying to hide its misconduct in a confidential arbitration.’
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‘The company included her salary in their press statement in an attempt to weaponize her success as an artist and businesswoman, as if that were something she should be ashamed of.’
Johansson recently welcomed her first child with husband Colin Jost in August. She is already mom to six-year-old daughter Rose with her ex-husband Romain Dauriac.
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