Gay Disney executive drops disparate treatment suit

A Walt Disney Co. executive has dropped his lawsuit against the company in which he alleged he was put on a “dead-end career track” after his supervisors learned of his sexual orientation.

An attorney for plaintiff Joel Hopkins filed court papers on Thursday with Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Randolph M. Hammock asking that the lawsuit be dismissed “with prejudice,” meaning it cannot be refiled. The court papers do not state if a settlement was reached or if Hopkins is not pursuing the case for other reasons.

In their court papers, Disney attorneys denied Hopkins’ allegations, stated that he was not entitled to damages and maintained his claims were barred by the statute of limitations.

The Santa Clarita resident brought the case in June 2021, alleging sexual orientation discrimination and failure to prevent discrimination. Hopkins was hired in 1994 as director of production finance for Disney entity Buena Vista Television and received two promotions within his first six years on the job, first to an executive director slot and later to vice president of production finance for a second Disney subsidiary, Touchstone Television, according to his court papers.

Hopkins alleged that he nonetheless experienced an ongoing pattern of discrimination and was paid less than other department heads. Disney also chose candidates for open positions who had less experience than Hopkins and had not worked for Disney as long as the plaintiff had, the suit alleged.

Hopkins additionally was over-scrutinized, harassed and falsely blamed for issues that were not his responsibility, according to his court papers. After his bosses found out about Hopkins was gay, he was put on a “dead-end career track” in which no help was offered from human resources, according to the suit.

More from News