On Wednesday night this week, the hashtag #FireGinaCarano was trending (again). Hours later, Gina Carano, who plays Cara Dune in The Mandalorian, was indeed fired by Disney. Here’s what happened and how Carano sank her promising future with Disney with just a few Instagram comments.
What Did Gina Carano Post To Get Fired From The Mandalorian?
Gina Carano, who starred as Cara Dune in the Star Wars spinoff series The Mandalorian, is an outspoken conservative and hasn’t been shy about expressing her opinions online. For months, she has echoed false claims by former President Trump saying that the U.S. Presidential election was rigged, mocked transgender pronouns, and openly mocked people who wore masks during the COVID-19 pandemic. She took a lot of heat for those comments but apparently didn’t learn her lesson.
On Tuesday night, February 9th, she posted several comments on Instagram mocking people who wore masks and even compared how conservatives in America are treated to Jews in Nazi Germany (see images below). For many people, the Nazi comments crossed the line.
Meanwhile in California 
Jews were beaten in the street, not by Nazi soldiers but by their neighbors… even children.
Within hours the hashtag #FireGinaCarano was dominating multiple social media networks. In a last-ditch attempt at damage control, Carano removed both posts a few hours later, but by then, it was too late.
By Thursday, February 11th, Disney released this statement: “Gina Carano is not currently employed by Lucasfilm and there are no plans for her to be in the future.” And almost as quick as a blaster flash, her promising future with Star Wars was now over.
What do you think? Was Disney right to fire Gina Carano over her controversial Instagram comments? Please let us know in this Facebook poll.
Additional parts of the statement also made Disney’s position on acceptance and tolerance clear, “Her social media posts denigrating people based on their cultural and religious identities are abhorrent and unacceptable.” Perhaps Disney was using this statement as an opportunity to send a strong message that all employees, even star actors, need to adhere to Disney’s code of conduct.
People Who Have Lost Their Jobs Because Of Their Social Media Posts
In the early days of social media, it wasn’t uncommon for people to lose their jobs for hurtful or insensitive comments that they posted online. For example, a newsroom employee at an ABC TV station in Salt Lake City got fired when they accidentally posted an anti-Mormon using the station’s KTVX Twitter account, instead of their own personal account.
But as social media apps have evolved, it’s become a lot easier to switch between work and personal profiles. Recent controversies have mostly been related to insensitive comments posted years ago, as with, James Gunn and Ken Jennings.
Gina Carano unfortunately didn’t learn from either her own or other’s past mistakes on social media. Being fired from The Mandalorian, one of the most popular TV shows of our time is a crippling blow to her career. There were even rumors that Disney was considering giving her character, Cara Dune, her own spin-off series from The Mandolorian. Perhaps Disney will now shift their focus instead to expanding the role of Katie Sackhoff’s character, Bo-Katan Kryze.
NERD NOTE: In 2006, Gina Carano fought in the first-ever sanctioned female MMA bout in history. Carano won the fight against her opponent, Leiticia Pestovаin, in only 38 seconds.
What do you think? Was Disney right to fire Gina Carano over her controversial Instagram comments? Please let us know in this Facebook poll.
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