Time’s Up accuses Disney of launching a “gendered attack” on Scarlett Johansson in connection with the Black Widow lawsuit.

Scarlett Johansson has accused Disney of a “gendered attack” after the actress sued the company for releasing Black Widow on its streaming service as well as in theaters.

Johansson, 36, filed a lawsuit against Disney earlier this week, claiming the company breached her contract by releasing the Marvel film simultaneously on Disney Plus and in theaters, a move she claims diluted her salary because her bonuses were based on box office performance.

A spokesperson for Disney responded, accusing Johansson of “callous disregard for the horrific and prolonged global effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.”

In the statement, they also revealed Johansson’s base salary of $20 million (£14.3 million).

Now, a number of women’s organizations, including Time’s Up, have blasted Disney, accusing the company of portraying the actress as insensitive in its statement.

‘While we take no position on the business issues in the litigation between Scarlett Johansson and The Walt Disney Company, we stand firmly against Disney’s recent statement that attempts to characterize Johansson as insensitive or selfish for defending her contractual business rights,’ read a joint statement from Women In Film, ReFrame, and Time’s Up.

‘This gendered character assassination has no place in a business dispute and contributes to a culture in which women and girls are perceived as less capable than men of protecting their own interests without facing ad hominem criticism.’

‘There is no merit whatsoever to this filing,’ said a Disney spokesperson. The lawsuit is especially sad and upsetting because of its callous disregard for the horrific and long-lasting global effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

‘Disney has fully complied with Ms. Johansson’s contract, and the release of Black Widow on Disney+ with Premier Access has significantly increased her ability to earn additional compensation on top of the $20 million she has already received.’

The statement elicited a rare response from Johansson’s agent and CAA co-chairman Bryan Lourd, who accused Disney of accusing the star “shamelessly and falsely” of being “insensitive to the global Covid pandemic.”

‘Scarlett has been Disney’s partner on nine films, which have earned Disney and its shareholders billions,’ said Lourd. In an attempt to weaponize her success as an artist and businesswoman, the company included her salary in their press release, as if it were something she should be ashamed of.

‘Scarlett is extremely proud of the work she and the other actors, writers, directors, producers, and members of the Marvel creative team have been a part of for well over a decade.

‘This lawsuit was filed as a result of Disney’s decision to knowingly breach Scarlett’s contract. They have purposefully shifted revenue and profits to the Disney+ side of the business, leaving artistic and financial partners out of their new equation. That’s all there is to it.

‘Disney’s direct attack on her character and everything else they implied is beneath the company with which many of us in the creative community have successfully collaborated for decades.’

If Johansson’s lawsuit is successful, it is expected to be a watershed moment in Hollywood.

It has already been reported that Emma Stone is ‘said to be weighing her options’ in terms of suing Disney over Cruella’s dual release, while former The Hollywood Reporter editor Matt Belloni stated in his newsletter What I’m Hearing… that Emily Blunt may also speak out following the release of Jungle Cruise.

Mulan and Raya and the Last Dragon are among the films that have been released on Disney Plus’s Premier Access platform, which costs subscribers an additional fee.