Why Was Gina Carano Fired from “The Mandalorian”? Inside Her Controversies

Gina Carano settled a wrongful termination lawsuit with Disney in 2025 after she was fired from 'The Mandalorian' four years prior

NEED TO KNOW

• Gina Carano was fired from The Mandalorian in 2021 after backlash over controversial social media posts
• Carano sued Disney for wrongful termination and settled the lawsuit in August 2025 for an undisclosed amount
• Since her firing, Carano returned to mixed martial arts for a May 2026 fight against Ronda Rousey

Gina Carano starred as Cara Dune in the first two seasons of The Mandalorian before she was fired in 2021.

The Deadpool actress was let go from the Disney+ series after she made headlines for controversial social media posts. The tweets — which included a message seemingly comparing how conservatives were being treated during the COVID-19 pandemic to how Jewish people were treated by the Nazis during the Holocaust — caused major backlash, and she was fired in February 2021.

Three years later, Carano sued the Walt Disney Company for wrongful termination and discrimination. In August 2025, both Disney and Carano confirmed that they had settled the lawsuit for an undisclosed amount of money.

In the years since her firing, Carano has pivoted her career and returned to pursuing mixed martial arts — which she initially found success in in the mid to late 2000s. Carano returned to the ring for the first time in 17 years to take on Ronda Rousey in Netflix’s first-ever live MMA event from Intuit Dome in Los Angeles. 

Here's everything to know about Gina Carano's firing from The Mandalorian and why she sued the Walt Disney Company.

Why was Gina Carano fired from The Mandalorian?

Carano played Cara for the first two seasons of The Mandalorian, but she was fired from the Star Wars spinoff in February 2021. Her firing came shortly after she faced controversy for posts on social media.

The actress reposted a statement on her Instagram Stories in February 2021, in which a person was comparing the treatment of conservatives in the U.S. during the pandemic to the treatment of Jewish people in Nazi Germany, per Entertainment Weekly.

Although Carano's message about conservatives was the "final straw" for Disney, she also faced controversy for other actions on social media.

In September 2020, Carano changed her bio on X to read "beep/bop/boop," which some people interpreted to mean that she was mocking the pronouns that social media users include in their profiles. However, she later claimed on X that "beep/bop/boop has zero to do with mocking trans people" and insinuated that she was referring to the Star Wars character R2-D2.

"They're mad cuz I won't put pronouns in my bio to show my support for trans lives. After months of harassing me in every way. I decided to put 3 VERY controversial words in my bio.. beep/bop/boop I'm not against trans lives at all," she posted on X at the time.

In addition, she later explained that her costar Pedro Pascal helped her "understand why people were putting them in their bios."

"I didn't know before but I do now. I won't be putting them in my bio but good for all you who choose to," she wrote on X. "I stand against bullying, especially the most vulnerable & freedom to choose."

Social media sleuths continued digging into Carano's social media accounts and also found old messages where she was spreading controversial narratives about COVID-19 and alleged voter fraud.

All the former sentiments culminated with her February 2021 social media post, and "#FireGinaCarano" trended on X. Later that month, a rep for LucasFilm told PEOPLE in a statement, "Gina Carano is not currently employed by Lucasfilm and there are no plans for her to be in the future."

At the time, then-Disney CEO Bob Chapek said Disney fired Carano because her comments didn't align with the company's values. He explained that Disney is not "left-leaning or right-leaning" but instead stands for "values that are universal: values of respect, values of decency, values of integrity and values of inclusion," per The Hollywood Reporter.

LucasFilm also explained the firing by saying in a statement, "Her social media posts denigrating people based on their cultural and religious identities are abhorrent and unacceptable.”

How did The Mandalorian explain Carano’s absence?

Since Carano was axed from The Mandalorian after the second season, many fans wondered how the Disney+ show was going to explain her absence. Carano's character, Cara, was a bounty hunter who was close with Pascal's Din Djarin (a.k.a. the Mandalorian).

During the season 3 premiere in March 2023, viewers finally learned the fate of Cara. The characters Din and High Magistrate Greef Karga (Carl Weathers) had a conversation in which Karga asked Din if he wanted to replace Cara as a marshal in Nevarro, because she had been promoted to the Special Forces of the New Republic.

The show's executive producer, Rick Famuyiwa, told Deadline that he and the other showrunners had carefully considered how to handle Cara's absence.

"Cara was a big part and continues as a character to be part of the world," Famuyiwa told Deadline in February 2023. "It had to be addressed in the creative, and [executive producer and showrunner Jon Favreau] took the time to think about that."

Why did Carano sue the Walt Disney Company?

Nearly three years after she was fired, Carano sued the Walt Disney Company and LucasFilm for allegedly firing her as a result of her conservative messages. She claimed the firing caused her emotional damage and that she lost millions of dollars in income from the show.

At the time of the 2024 lawsuit, she was asking for LucasFilm to either rehire her or pay her at least $75,000.

“A short time ago in a galaxy not so far away, Defendants made it clear that only one orthodoxy in thought, speech, or action was acceptable in their empire, and that those who dared to question or failed to fully comply would not be tolerated,” the lawsuit read, per NBC News. “And so it was with Carano.” 

Carano later addressed the suit and thanked X owner Elon Musk for helping her finance the lawsuit and "giving me an opportunity to bring my case to light."

“The truth is I was being hunted down from everything I posted to every post I liked because I was not in line with the acceptable narrative of the time,” Carano claimed on X at the time. “My words were consistently twisted to demonize & dehumanize me as an alt right wing extremist.”

She alleged in another message on X, "Disney has confirmed what has been known all along, they will fire you if you say anything they disagree with, even if they have to MISREPRESENT, MALIGN, and MISCHARACTERIZE you to do it.  They are now on record letting everyone who works for them know that Disney will take any chance they get to control what you say, what you think or they will attempt to destroy your career."

Disney argued in their subsequent motion requesting a dismissal that they had a First Amendment right to fire Carano, because they have "a constitutional right not to associate its artistic expression with Carano's speech." The company also maintained that "a state cannot force an employer engaged in speech to speak through an employee whose own views or public profile could compromise the employer’s own message."

Disney further claimed that they fired Carano because of her social media posts "blaming pandemic-related closure orders and vaccine mandates for causing widespread suicides and murders, attacking the legitimacy of the 2020 Presidential election, and mocking people who identify their pronouns to show support for transgender rights."

However, Disney's "final straw" was her message about Jewish people, in which they said she "publicly trivialize[d] the Holocaust by comparing criticism of political conservatives to the annihilation of millions of Jewish people."

How was Gina Carano's lawsuit resolved?

Over one year after Carano filed her wrongful termination lawsuit, she reached a settlement with LucasFilm and the Walt Disney Company in August 2025.

"The Walt Disney Company and Lucasfilm are pleased to announce that we have reached an agreement with Gina Carano to resolve the issues in her pending lawsuit against the companies," a spokesperson for LucasFilm told PEOPLE in a statement on Aug. 7.

"Ms. Carano was always well respected by her directors, co-stars, and staff, and she worked hard to perfect her craft while treating her colleagues with kindness and respect," the statement continued. "With this lawsuit concluded, we look forward to identifying opportunities to work together with Ms. Carano in the near future."

Later that same day, Carano wrote on X that she was "excited" the lawsuit had come to an end and that she was "smiling" with the outcome.

"I have come to an agreement with Disney/Lucasfilm which I believe is the best outcome for all parties involved. I hope this brings some healing to the force," she wrote. "I want to extend my deepest most heartfelt gratitude to Elon Musk, a man I've never met, who did this Good Samaritan deed for me in funding my lawsuit."

She also thanked her lawyers, God and all her followers who shared their "unrelenting support throughout my life and career."

"I am excited to flip the page and move onto the next chapter," she concluded. "My desires remain in the arts, which is where I hope you will join me. Yes, I’m smiling."

What has Gina Carano done since her firing?

Shortly after she was fired from The Mandalorian, Carano announced that she was working with Ben Shapiro's conservative website, The Daily Wire, to star in and produce a movie.

"The Daily Wire is helping make one of my dreams—to develop and produce my own film—come true," Carano told Deadline in February 2021. "I cried out and my prayer was answered. I am sending out a direct message of hope to everyone living in fear of cancellation by the totalitarian mob."

"I have only just begun using my voice which is now freer than ever before and I hope it inspires others to do the same," she added. "They can't cancel us if we don't let them."

In 2022, Terror on the Prairie was released and starred Carano as a veteran's wife fighting against a group of outlaws in Montana after the Civil War. Later that year, she also starred in the fictional retelling of former President Joe Biden's son Hunter Biden in the film, My Son Hunter.

As for her personal life, Carano is in a long-term relationship with former Muay Thai fighter and kickboxer, Kevin "The Soul Assassin" Ross.

She announced in March 2026 that she and Ross got married and called it "the best thing I've ever done."

Read the full article here