ヨハンソンさんがディズニー提訴　『ブラック・ウィドウ』ネット配信で

【ロサンゼルスＡＦＰ＝時事】米女優のスカーレット・ヨハンソンさんが２９日、主演したマーベル映画『ブラック・ウィドウ』の劇場とストリーミング配信での同時公開は契約違反に当たるとして、マーベルの親会社ディズニーを相手取り、ロサンゼルスの裁判所に提訴した。ディズニーの決定により巨額の損失を被ったと主張している。（写真は米女優スカーレット・ヨハンソンさん）
　訴状によると、ハリウッドでトップレベルの出演料を取る大スターであるヨハンソンさんは、期待作だった『ブラック・ウィドウ』の出演料として、劇場での興行収入に比例する金額を受け取る契約を結んでいた。
　同作は昨年に劇場公開される予定だったが、新型コロナウイルスの流行により延期が繰り返され、今月ようやく劇場とストリーミングサービス「ディズニープラス」で同時公開された。だが公開後３週間の米国内興行収入は１億５０００万ドル（約１６０億円）と、マーベル作品としては振るわない結果に。アナリストらは、ストリーミングでの公開が興収に大きく響いたとみている。
　ディズニープラス会員は３０ドル（約３３００円）の追加料金を支払うことで同作を視聴できる。ディズニーは、公開初週の週末を終えた時点での発表で、同作がディズニープラス上で６０００万ドル（約６６億円）以上の収益を上げたことを明らかにしていた。
　ハリウッドの多くのスタジオと同様に、ディズニーも将来的な収益源としてストリーミング配信の優先度を上げてきている。
　ヨハンソンさんの代理人弁護士はＡＦＰに対し、「ディズニーが『ブラック・ウィドウ』などの映画を直接ディズニープラスで公開するのは、会員数を増やし、株価を上げるのが目的であること、そしてそのための口実として新型コロナウイルスを隠れみのにしていることは、誰もが知っている事実だ」と主張した。
　ディズニーの広報担当者はＡＦＰに対し、ヨハンソンさん側の主張を否定。契約違反の事実はなく、「この訴訟には何らメリットがない」と一蹴した。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2021/07/30-13:33）

Scarlett Johansson is suing Disney over its decision to release superhero movie Black Widow on streaming at the same time as in theaters, alleging a breach of contract which cost the star millions of dollars.
Johansson, one of Hollywood's biggest and top-paid stars, was entitled to a percentage of box office receipts from the much-anticipated Marvel film, according to a lawsuit filed Thursday at Los Angeles Superior Court.
The film was originally due for a big-screen release last year, but was delayed multiple times due to the Covid-19 pandemic and was eventually released this month simultaneously in theaters and on Disney+.
Box office analysts have cited the film's streaming debut as a major factor in a lackluster -- by Marvel film standards -- release for a film that has grossed just over $150 million in domestic theaters in three weeks.
It's no secret that Disney is releasing films like Black Widow directly onto Disney+ to increase subscribers and thereby boost the company's stock price -- and that it's hiding behind Covid-19 as a pretext to do so, said Johansson's attorney John Berlinski in a statement to AFP.
This will surely not be the last case where Hollywood talent stands up to Disney and makes it clear that, whatever the company may pretend, it has a legal obligation to honor its contracts, he added.
A spokesperson for Disney -- which owns superhero movie powerhouse Marvel Studios -- dismissed the lawsuit, telling AFP in a statement that Disney had not breached any contract and that 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, it said.
- 'Keep the revenues' -
Like many Hollywood studios, Disney is increasingly prioritizing streaming as a source of future revenue -- a process accelerated by the closure of movie theaters upon the arrival of the pandemic in spring 2020.
Following the film's opening weekend, Disney issued a press release claiming Black Widow had earned over $60M on Disney+ alone, where it was available to subscribers at an additional $30 cost.
Johansson's lawsuit says that to protect her financial interests, Ms. Johansson extracted a promise from Marvel that the release of the Picture would be a 'theatrical release,' which she understood to mean it would not appear on streaming until a traditional window of time had elapsed.
But Disney wanted to lure the Picture's audience away from movie theatres and towards its owned streaming service, where it could keep the revenues for itself while simultaneously growing the Disney+ subscriber base, a proven way to boost Disney's stock price, it alleges.
Disney wanted to substantially devalue Ms. Johansson's agreement and thereby enrich itself, it adds.
The Disney spokesperson said the company has fully complied with Ms. Johansson's contract and that the Disney+ streaming release has significantly enhanced her ability to earn additional compensation on top of the $20M she has received to date.
The issue of compensation linked to box office receipts is a growing concern in streaming-focused Hollywood, where such deals for top A-listers are common.
Rival studio Warner Bros was slammed last year for a similar decision to release all of its 2021 movies simultaneously in theaters and on its HBO Max platform.
Warner renegotiated many of its deals with stars and filmmakers, reportedly paying out $200 million to compensate for the loss of box office earnings.