DIS Walt Disney Co

By Micah Maidenberg 

Lucasfilm said it is no longer working with Gina Carano after the actress's social-media posts angered fans.

Ms. Carano played the character Cara Dune on "The Mandalorian," a television series inspired by the Star Wars franchise that is available to stream on Walt Disney Co.'s Disney+ service. Lucasfilm is a unit of Disney.

"Gina Carano is not currently employed by Lucasfilm and there are no plans for her to be in the future," a spokeswoman for the studio said. "Nevertheless, her social media posts denigrating people based on their cultural and religious identities are abhorrent and unacceptable."

On Tuesday, Ms. Carano shared an Instagram story, or a post that disappears, that read in part: "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," according to a report in Variety on Wednesday.

Efforts to reach Ms. Carano or her representatives weren't successful.

United Talent Agency also has ceased representing Ms. Carano, agency Chief Executive Jeremy Zimmer said in an email.

The former mixed-martial-arts artist drew criticism last year on social media over her posts relating to the use of pronouns and transgender people. Outraged by her recent and earlier activity, some Twitter users called for her dismissal, using the hashtag "#FireGinaCarano," which was first deployed last year.

Disney executives said at an investor event in December that the company would premiere new shows tied to "The Mandalorian" on Disney+ around Christmas. Lucasfilm had planned to disclose then that it would showcase Ms. Carano in her own Disney+ series, but it canceled those plans because of her Twitter activity, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

The Lucasfilm spokeswoman didn't respond to a request for comment regarding those plans.

Disney's efforts to preserve its image as a family-friendly brand have become increasingly complex since the company acquired marquee franchises like Star Wars and Marvel, brands that have cultivated vocal fanbases over decades.

Disney, which is scheduled to release quarterly results Thursday, didn't respond to a request for comment about Ms. Carano.

--R.T. Watson contributed to this article.

Write to Micah Maidenberg at micah.maidenberg@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 11, 2021 15:25 ET (20:25 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2021 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.