NEW TWIST

Disney Drops Most Claims in Political Retaliation Lawsuit Against DeSantis

The entertainment giant isn’t taking their foot off the gas entirely—just shifting some claims to a Florida court.

The Walt Disney Company on Thursday dropped some claims from its federal retaliation lawsuit against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, announcing it’d pursue at least part of the case solely in state court. The cuts to the lawsuit—centered around a dispute over Disney World’s development contracts—shrunk the filing from 84 pages down to 48. Disney made clear in a statement it is still seeking revenge for the governor’s attempts to strong-arm the company out of money for publicly disputing some of his policies. “We will continue to fight vigorously to defend these contracts, because these agreements will determine whether or not Disney can invest billions of dollars and generate thousands of new jobs in Florida,” a spokesperson told NBC. The lone claim that remains in the federal lawsuit against DeSantis is a first amendment claim that accuses DeSantis of using his office to retaliate against Disney for its political beliefs—specifically its stance on Florida’s infamous “Don’t Say Gay” law.