Disney on Thursday appealed the decision by a federal judge to throw out its lawsuit against Gov. Ron DeSantis and state officials over control of the special governing district at Disney World.

The entertainment giant on Wednesday indicated it would challenge the ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Allen Winsor in Tallahassee. The case will move to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta.

Disney sued claiming that it had faced government retaliation after it opposed a law pushed by DeSantis and the Republican-controlled Legislature to limit instruction in public schools about sexual orientation and gender identity, which critics derided as “don’t say gay.”

The dispute led DeSantis and lawmakers to replace Disney’s self-governing Reedy Improvement District with a board appointed by the governor.

“The reality is the Florida Legislature has every right to change special districts; they’ve always had that right,” DeSantis said at a news conference in Jacksonville on Thursday. “And what’s happened since [is] there’s been accountability.”

The governor added that “they don’t have a case. Even if you assume everything they say is true.”

In an unsigned statement Wednesday, Disney said, “This is an important case with serious implications for the rule of law, and it will not end here.”

Steven Lemongello of the Sentinel staff contributed to this report.