Gina Carano sues Disney, seeking her Mandalorian role back in lawsuit funded by Elon Musk

Gina Carano is suing Lucasfilm and Disney over her firing from the TV series The Mandalorian three years ago, which came in the wake of her making several controversial posts on social media.

The actress lost her role as Star Wars ranger Cara Dune in February 2021, after she shared social media posts comparing modern American politics to Nazi Germany. Now she's filed a suit in California federal court alleging wrongful termination and discrimination. According to a complaint reviewed by EW, she's also asking for Lucasfilm to reinstate her in the role of Cara Dune.

Elon Musk is helping to fund Carano's lawsuit, after he publicly promised to support users of X (formerly Twitter) who claim to have faced discrimination for their social media posts on the platform.

"As a sign of X Corp's commitment to free speech, we're proud to provide financial support for Gina Carano's lawsuit, empowering her to seek vindication of her free speech rights on X and the ability to work without bullying, harassment, or discrimination," a spokesperson for X said a statement obtained by EW.

Representatives for Disney and Lucasfilm didn't immediately respond to EW's request for comment.

Carano lost her job on The Mandalorian after she ignited a backlash with a post suggesting that having different political opinions is similar to being Jewish during the Holocaust. She also mocked people who include pronouns in their social media bios, spread misinformation about the COVID-19 pandemic, and shared controversial posts about voter fraud. At the time, Lucasfilm released a statement calling Carano's posts "abhorrent and unacceptable," and her agents at UTA also dropped her as a client.

In a lengthy statement posted to X on Tuesday, Carano denied ever using "aggressive language," claiming, "My words were consistently twisted to demonize & dehumanize me as an alt right wing extremist. It was a bullying smear campaign aimed at silencing, destroying & making an example out of me." She also claimed that she has spoken to her Mandalorian costars since her firing and that "there is nothing but care and kind words between us."

Carano added that she "did not expect anything" when Musk made his offer to fund legal representation for X users, but she later received an email from lawyers looking into her case.

"As for me, I would love to pick up where I left off & continue my journey of creating & participating in story-telling, which is my utmost passion & everything I worked so hard for" Carano wrote on X. "It has been difficult to move forward with the lies & labels stuck on me, backed & encouraged by the most powerful entertainment company in the world. I am grateful someone has come to my defense in such a powerful way & look forward to clearing my name."

Carano appeared as Cara Dune in the first two seasons of The Mandalorian, starring alongside Pedro Pascal. She was also expected to star in the spinoff series Rangers of the New Republic, which has since been canceled.

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