After “Black Widow” star Scarlett Johansson filed a breach-of-contract lawsuit against Disney for the studio’s decision to release her film to both streaming platforms and theaters, many industry insiders speculated that Emma Stone, who had a similar deal for “Cruella,” would follow suit. But it seems the actress and her team found a different method of addressing the issue.
Rather than sue, Stone has negotiated a sequel deal that will increase her pay from $8 million to something in the low eight-figure range, according to The Hollywood Reporter. More importantly, however, Stone’s team managed to secure a percentage of streaming earnings — the key point in dispute in Johansson’s complaint.
While the details of Stone’s “Cruella 2” contract remain unknown, the president of her agency, Endeavor, said on an August 16 earnings call, “We are getting the front end for our clients for movies and TV, like we always get, [and] increasingly, we are getting the backend bought out … the Netflix model.”
The agency also took the unusual step of releasing a statement about Stone’s deal, telling Deadline, “While the media landscape has been disrupted in a meaningful way for all distributors, their creative partners cannot be left on the sidelines to carry a disproportionate amount of the downside without the potential for upside.” The statement continued, “This agreement demonstrates that there can be an equitable path forward that protects artists and aligns studios’ interests with talent. We are proud to work alongside Emma and Disney, and appreciate the studio’s willingness to recognize her contributions as a creative partner. We are hopeful that this will open the door for more members of the creative community to participate in the success of new platforms.”
Former Hollywood Reporter editor and entertainment lawyer Matthew Belloni said Sunday in his industry newsletter, “What I’m Hearing,” that the deal may not be as big a win for Disney as the company is projecting because Stone’s back-end deal, previously reserved for theatrical releases, sets a streaming precedent other stars will expect. Said Belloni:
Stone didn’t sue, but that doesn’t mean she rolled over. The opposite, in fact. I’m told that she forced Disney to acknowledge for the first time that it should have negotiated a “buyout” of her box office bonuses on the first Cruella, like Warner Bros. did for its 2021 movies. For the titles that went day-and-date on streaming, Disney had previously been sticking to its position that simply adding the at-home upcharge revenue to the box office pool was sufficient. To that end, Stone scored an eight-figure make-good payment, independent of whether Cruella 2 actually is greenlit. And if the sequel happens, she’s in line for another eight-figure payday. (Disney declined to comment on these numbers.)
I’ve also learned that, as part of the Stone negotiation, Disney agreed to drop its insistence that she forgo a traditional backend on Cruella 2 in favor of tiered bonuses. Instead, Stone will get her up-front fee, plus a traditional back-end participation that includes a royalty on each at-home sale on streaming. (Cruella was available for a $30 upcharge.)
That’s an about face, and not what Disney wants going-forward.
While Stone’s situation may be settled, other Disney stars like Emily Blunt (who reportedly had a similar contract for “Jungle Cruise”) and others are likely already exploring how they can get a percentage of streaming earnings going forward.
