Gina Carano, the MMA fighter turned actor, who played Cara Dune in the Star Wars series, is suing Disney and Lucasfilm alleging her firing from The Mandalorian was an example of discrimination against political views. Carano is seeking at least $75,000 in punitive damages and hopes for a court order to recast her character.
And, she has got Elon Musk to back her funding. In 2023, X owner Musk promised to help those who had faced employment discrimination due to their activity on the platform. Carano, who played Cara Dune, a Rebel soldier turned mercenary, in the first two seasons of The Mandalorian, faced criticism after she shared several controversial political posts on social media.
Gina Carano is Suing Disney and Lucasfilm Over Her Firing From the TV Show The Mandalorian
Gina Carano is suing Lucasfilm and Disney over her firing from the TV series The Mandalorian three years ago, following her making several controversial posts on social media. The lawsuit has been filed in the California federal court, alleging she was discriminated against for her political views. Speaking publicly about the lawsuit on Twitter, Carano alleges her words and posts were twisted because she was “not in line with the acceptable narrative of the time.”
“The truth is I was being hunted down from everything I posted to every post I liked because I was not in line with the acceptable narrative of the time,” she wrote on Twitter/X.
“My words were consistently twisted to demonize & dehumanize me as an alt right wing extremist,” she added.
Carano is also claiming for wrongful discharge and s*x discrimination. She seeks a court order that would force Lucasfilm to recast her and at least $75,000, plus punitive damages. The suit refers to Disney and Lucasfilm as using “bullying, discriminatory, and retaliatory actions”.
In 2023, Elon Musk had offered to help anyone who is “unfairly treated” by their employers “due to posting or liking something on this platform.” In a statement, X’s head of business operations, Joe Benarroch, said:
“As a sign of X Corp’s commitment to free speech, we’re proud to provide financial support for Gina Carano’s lawsuit, empowering her to seek vindication of her free speech rights on X and the ability to work without bullying, harassment, or discrimination.”
Carano wrote that she had the “deepest gratitude” for Musk assisting her in the case.
Why Was Gina Carano Fired from The Mandalorian?
After playing Cara Dune in the series and playing the role for two seasons of the show, Gina Carano was also set to lead the spinoff show Rangers of the New Republic before she was fired over her political social media posts.
“Jews were beaten in the streets, not by Nazi soldiers but by their neighbors…even by children. Because history is edited, most people today don’t realize that to get to the point where Nazi soldiers could easily round up thousands of Jews, the government first made their own neighbors hate them simply for being Jews. How is that any different from hating someone for their political views,” she shared this post on Instagram which is no longer available. (Via Variety)
In a statement, Lucasfilm said:
“Gina Carano is not currently employed by Lucasfilm and there are no plans for her to be in the future. Nevertheless, her social media posts denigrating people based on their cultural and religious identities are abhorrent and unacceptable.” (Via The Guardian)
Immediately after that Carano was dropped by UTA as a client. She also mocked masking during the pandemic and suggested that voter fraud took place during the presidential elections of 2020.
The Mandalorian can currently be streamed on Disney+
