If anyone thought that Emma Stone and Disney were at odds because of reports that she was considering a similar lawsuit as Scarlett Johansson, they’d be wrong. It seems that Stone and the House of the Mouse are (back?) on good terms.
The Hollywood Reporter and other outlets are now reporting that Stone has closed a new deal to star in a sequel to Cruella. Not only is Stone returning, but director Graig Gillespie and scriptwriter Tony McNamara are back for the second round.
The first film debuted on May 28, allowing audiences to choose whether they wanted to see the film in the theater or stream it as a Premium Access Disney+ title for $30. While viewers seem to love the additional options, theaters are fiercely fighting back for exclusivity rights.
Black Widow Lawsuit
As we have reported previously, Scarlett Johansson, the star of Black Widow and co-star of several Avengers films, sued Disney after the release of her standalone film last month. She claims that her contract stipulated an exclusive theatrical release for Black Widow and that she would be compensated from box office sales.
Since Black Widow, like Cruella, debuted both theatrically and on Premium Access Disney+, Johansson claims that she missed out on earning a cool $50 million. Disney’s statement on the lawsuit only made things worse, as they appeared to go after Johansson’s character.
Unlike Emma Stone, Johansson seems to be finished with her role in the Disney MCU. This may have emboldened her to squeeze every last drop out of her solo outing. Stone, on the other hand, could be considering her options more carefully. Especially after headlining a very strong first outing as the titular character in Cruella.
Either way, we’ll be watching and covering the development of Cruella 2 with great interest.
