Most Americans Think Gina Carano Should Not Have Been Fired

Gina Carano continues to generate tons of opinions surrounding her firing by Disney.

By Faith McKay | Published

This article is more than 2 years old

gina carano

Gina Carano was fired from The Mandalorian after a long history of controversial social media posts. The follow-up to this has been explosive. Prior to her firing, hashtags regularly went viral demanding that she be fired or supporting her. Following her firing, there has been much of the same. A lot of the conversation has revolved around the last Instagram Story she posted that finally led to her being fired, but with time, the conversation has grown to include a wider discussion about cancel culture, Disney, and “woke” politics. How do audiences at large feel about what has happened? Should Gina Carano have been fired from The Mandalorian for her social media behavior? According to a new poll commissioned by The Daily Wire, most Americans view Gina Carano favorably and feel she should not have been fired.

The poll surveyed 1,098 adults between February 26th and March 3rd. Of the respondents who recognized Gina Carano, 58% viewed her favorably. According to the Western Journal, respondents were then shown the now infamous Instagram post which Disney fired her over, and 73% of those surveyed said she should not have been fired for it.

The poll was paid for by The Daily Wire, Gina Carano’s new employer. She’ll soon be developing, producing, and starring in her own film for the company. They hired her shortly after she was fired. Since then, The Daily Wire has been posting a lot of support for the actress. They’ve done exclusive interviews with her to help her share her story and views. She’s said a number of times, “They can’t cancel us if we don’t let them.” Her fans have been rallying around her, offering support and outcries against cancel culture.

Without more information on the nature of the questions the survey asked or the way respondents were chosen, in addition to the small sample size, it’s not yet clear what audiences’ wider opinions are of Gina Carano or of Disney. While the survey polled 1,098 Americans, there are 331 million people in the country. Many of them likely don’t know who Gina Carano is, and fewer yet have seen her social media posts. Currently, Carano has 1.9 million followers on Instagram, so this is even a small sample size just compared to her own following.

Gina Carano

If Disney could have it their way, we wouldn’t be talking about Gina Carano anymore. The conversation isn’t the best for the company’s image. First, because they previously worked with her and she posted insensitive content to social media. Next, because it has opened a conversation about cancel culture. And then because it opens a discussion about whether the company itself is left-leaning or conservative.

Disney CEO Bob Chapek found himself in a conversation on that very topic. While he didn’t directly address Gina Carano or her firing, he did say that the company didn’t lean in either political direction. He said that he believes Disney stands “for values that are universal: respect, decency, integrity and inclusion and we seek to have the content that we make reflective of the rich diversity of the world we live in.”

While some have suggested that firing Gina Carano from The Mandalorian will lead to negative results for Disney’s bottom line, that’s a little hard to believe. The Mandalorian has been a big hit for Disney+. However, even if Carano fans abandoned the show, Disney owns a lot of properties. Estimates suggest that in 2020, the company had assets valued at over $200 billion.