Gerard Butler has filed a lawsuit against Millenium Media, the makers of the film Olympus Has Fallen, claiming that the production house owes him at least $10 million dollars as compensation from the film’s profits, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
As per the lawsuit filed on Friday, Millenium Media, formerly known as Nu Image, and Padre Nuestro Productions, failed to pay Butler from the net profits of Olympus Has Fallen despite the film collecting over $170 million worldwide. The complaint also states that the gross receipts are missing from the audit accounting statements and calls it a “comprehensive premeditated scheme.”
Butler’s suit comes a day after actor Scarlett Johansson filed a breach of contract suit against Disney for releasing her Marvel superhero film Black Widow simultaneously on Disney+ and theatres. Johansson said her agreement with Disney-owned Marvel Entertainment came with the guarantee that the film would have an exclusive theatrical release, with the box-office performance determining her salary. She alleged that the simultaneous release was an intentional breach of the agreement in order to prevent her from realising “the full benefit of her bargain with Marvel.”
While the studio maintained that Johansson earned “additional compensation on top of the $20 million she has received to date,” the actor’s lawsuit claimed losses worth $50 million. The company went on to call Johansson’s lawsuit “sad and distressing” and accused her of being unsympathetic in times of the pandemic.
Johansson’s talent agency, Creative Artists Agency, lashed out at Disney for releasing the actor’s salary and said the company “falsely accused Ms Johansson of being insensitive to the global COVID pandemic, in an attempt to make her appear to be someone they know she isn’t,” as per a report on Variety.
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Bryan Lourd, co-chairman of the CAA, said that leaking details about her salary was “an attempt to weaponize her success as an artist and businesswoman.”
Following the filing of her suit, Johansson received support from Time’s Up, ReFrame, and Women In Film, which called out Disney for its “gendered character attack” on the actor who was trying to defend her “contractual business rights.”
Johansson’s lawsuit is being termed path-breaking for bringing to the fore conversations around Hollywood production banners depriving artists of their rightful compensation. Butler’s complaint shows that this is not limited to female artists.