After the shocking exit of Victoria Alonso from Marvel Studios, The Walt Disney Company has agreed to a settlement deal with the former Marvel VFX chief.
The former Marvel executive was represented by her lawyers during this meeting with Disney and managed to settle on a deal a few days later. Deadline reported that while the details of that meeting with Disney remain confidential, Alfonso maybe has received a multimillion-dollar compensation deal. Neither Disney nor Alfonso’s representatives have commented on the settlement.
Alfonso announced her exit from Marvel Studios back in March 2023, after over 10 years of service as the president of physical, post-production, VFX, and animation. Days prior to her exit, she attended the 95th Academy Awards, where it was reported that she spotted two female photographers on the red carpet and asked them to pose with her on the giant Oscar statue. She also left a comment, saying “We’ve worked so hard to get here and we’re not going anywhere.”
While details about her exit were not disclosed, theories circulated on the internet, especially when it came to the “toxic work environment” for VFX artists. Artists that worked for Alonso revealed that Marvel Studios was “unable to give clear guidelines” and that the former executive would “blacklist artists” who “pissed her off” in any way.
Both she and Disney’s legal team released statements about the exit since the news went public. According to Alfonso’s legal team, they alleged that Disney let go of the executive because she “had the courage to criticize Disney” and was silenced by the company. They also believed that it was her race, gender, and sexual identity that made her a target for the company. Meanwhile, Disney claimed that Alfonso was fired because of ” “an indisputable breach of contract and a direct violation of company policy.”
It was reported that Marvel Studios executive Kevin Feige didn’t intervene to save her job and that she would be replaced.