Gerard Butler Sues for $10M in Backend Compensation for Olympus Has Fallen
Written by SOURCE on July 30, 2021
Gerard Butler has just decided to sue Millennium Media for $10 million over profit-sharing claims in regards to his 2013 blockbuster film Olympus Has Fallen.
Variety reports Butler filed a lawsuit on Friday in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleging that Nu Image, Millennium Media and Padre Nuestro Productions never intended to pay him net profits. The suit alleges Butler is owed at least $10 million from the producers of the film after it grossed nearly $170 million globally. Butler’s suit claims that he’s never received any portion of the net profits from Olympus Has Fallen, despite the fact that the film was a surprise hit at the box office.
The film spawned two successful sequels, 2016’s London Has Fallen and 2019’s Angel Has Fallen, in which Butler reprised the role of Mike Banning, a Secret Service agent who has to rescue the president from hostage-takers.
The lawsuit comes just a day after it was announced that Scarlett Johansson is suing Disney over the release of Black Widow.
Johansson filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court Thursday alleging that her contract was breached when Marvel’s parent company released the film on the Disney+ platform alongside its theatrical run.
According to Johansson, an agreement with Marvel Entertainment included the guarantee of a theater-only release. Furthermore, the suit states, Johansson’s salary was based “in large part” on how well the film—which also stars Florence Pugh and David Harbour—did at the traditional box office.
When reached for comment by Complex Thursday afternoon, Johansson’s attorney John Berlinski argued that Disney is “hiding behind COVID-19 as a pretext” to boost Disney+ subscribers and the company’s stock price by releasing movies like Black Widow onto the platform.
