Washington [US], February 22 (ANI): Actor Gina Carano, who was fired from the hit 2019 drama series ‘The Mandalorian’ over inflammatory social media posts, recently opened up about it, calling out Disney for ‘bullying’ her.
As per People Magazine, the actor sat down with The Daily Wire’s Ben Shapiro, with whom she now has a movie deal, to discuss the controversy on ‘The Ben Shapiro Show’.
“I’ve been through so much, and I’ve seen so much now, clearly, of the bullying that’s been taking place, and I saw it before. I’m not the only one that’s ever been bullied by this company, and I know that so deeply,” she said, calling out Disney.
Carano said she could share a story that would “turn things around in the media” but does not because it would implicate a friend. “Everyone is afraid of losing their job,” she said.
Carano also discussed the post that led to her firing, which featured an image of a Jewish woman fleeing men armed with clubs in 1941 Ukraine.
The post read, “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?”
In her sit down with Shapiro, Carano, who said she’s “so inspired by the gentle spirit of the Jewish people,” maintained her intention with the photo was to “bring people together” and to call attention to “people tearing each other apart.”
The actor also claimed that her former employers were looking for a reason to fire her from the show, comparing the situation to head-hunting in boxing.
“You know how boxers head-hunt sometimes and forget to go for the body? I feel like Disney or Lucasfilm or whoever it is, just certain people at that company…I feel like I’ve been being head-hunted (…) and you can feel it,” she explained.
Carano concluded her thoughts on the matter by doubling down on her assertion that Disney was ‘bullying’ her into silence.
“I was prepared at any point to be let go, because I’ve seen this happen to so many people. I’ve seen the looks on their faces. I’ve seen the bullying that takes place, and so when this started, they point their guns at you, and you know it’s only a matter of time. I’ve seen it happen to so many people, and I just thought to myself (…) ‘you’re coming for me, I know you are.’ They’re making it very obvious through their employees who were coming for me, and so I was like, ‘I’m going to go down swinging and I’m going to stay true to myself.'”
It was recently announced that Carano is teaming with The Daily Wire for a new movie after she was dropped by her agency UTA.
Earlier last week, Carano revealed that she was sidelined during the press promotion for the second season of the series after she and Lucasfilms, which produces the show and is owned by Disney, became at odds with each other.
On February 10, a Lucasfilm spokesperson said in a statement obtained by Variety, “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.”
The actor played former Rebel Alliance soldier Cara Dune in ‘The Mandalorian’, an instant fan favourite series. There was even a plan to give Cara Dune a stand-alone show, but that has all been swept away amid the controversy.
As per Variety, Lucasfilm fired Carano on February 10 after she shared several controversial social media posts on her Instagram story.
One of the actor’s posts compared contemporary political differences to the treatment of Jews in Nazi Germany, and another post mocked the mask-wearing mandates amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Carano has also come under fire by posting misinformation about election fraud and mocking people who specify their gender pronouns.
The actor was also dropped by UTA as a client within hours after her Lucasfilm firing. Many users on Twitter used the hashtag #FireGinaCarano on Wednesday as a part of the social media backlash. (ANI)
