The Village People are Suing Disney Over “Hostile Treatment”

The Walt Disney Company is being accused of refusing to hire The Village People. The resulting lawsuit also lists a few other things, like breach of contract, fraud, and conspiracy. The Mouse must not be a macho, macho-man fan.

Oddly, the offenses in question occurred in 2018 when The Village People were scheduled to perform at Walt Disney World’s EPCOT. According to TMZ, the whole issue started when original Village People member Victor Willis and his wife, Karen, had a falling out with others in the group.

It’s not clear which original members (aside from Willis) were part of the breakup. TMZ says it was Jacques Morali, but he passed away in 1991. Maybe it was another man with the same name?

Regardless, the Willis family landed the gig to perform in 2018. On the surface, no problems were present until it came time to set up for the performance.

Karen Willis alleges that Disney staff actively refused to let her participate in the show. When attempting to assist, claiming her involvement would lead to a better show, she was ushered away from the front-of-house area.

Later, she claims that the pair were attacked by fans who were “planted” by the other band members who were part of the falling out. Another issue is that the couple was not provided contract-specific security.

The fallout resulted in Disney allegedly withholding pay and blacklisting this version of The Village People from performing at Walt Disney World. The Willis lawsuit is demanding $20M in damages.

Disney attempted to dismiss the lawsuit, but San Diego County Superior Judge Katherine Bacal threw out the demand from the Mouse. According to Billboard, the entertainment giant stated it was protected by the First Amendment when it comes to who/what it can hire to perform at the parks.

[Source: TMZ]

[Source: Billboard]