Friday the 13th legal battle may end by 2020
Nov 30, 2019 0:34:05 GMT
masterofallgoons and rogerthat like this
Post by politicidal on Nov 30, 2019 0:34:05 GMT
Didn't know this was even a thing happening.
TEXT:
The legal battle over the Friday the 13th franchise might be coming to an end next June. The first Friday the 13th was released back in 1980, which was the start of a long-running slasher franchise. In the '80s, a new Friday the 13th movie came out nearly every year, but things have been a bit slower lately because of a legal battle between two crucial men in the development of the original film.
Paramount Pictures owned the rights to the Friday the 13th franchise up until they sold the IP to New Line Cinema after the poor reception of Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan. Things didn't go much better for New Line, but they were able to work with the original film's director, Sean S. Cunningham, to make Freddy vs. Jason in 2003. Several years later, after the reboot in 2009, Cunningham and writer Victor Miller began a legal dispute on who actually owned the copyright to the series. A judge had ruled in favor of Miller when it came to the rights of the original movie; however, Cunningham appealed the court's decision, making the future of the franchise unknown. Now it looks like the lengthy legal battle may finally be coming to an end.
Paramount Pictures owned the rights to the Friday the 13th franchise up until they sold the IP to New Line Cinema after the poor reception of Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan. Things didn't go much better for New Line, but they were able to work with the original film's director, Sean S. Cunningham, to make Freddy vs. Jason in 2003. Several years later, after the reboot in 2009, Cunningham and writer Victor Miller began a legal dispute on who actually owned the copyright to the series. A judge had ruled in favor of Miller when it came to the rights of the original movie; however, Cunningham appealed the court's decision, making the future of the franchise unknown. Now it looks like the lengthy legal battle may finally be coming to an end.
Lawyer Larry Zerner (hat tip Screen Geek) recently posted on Twitter, giving fans an update on the legal dispute. According to Zerner, "The 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals has proposed oral arguments for the week of February 10th, 2020. This means there will probably be a decision by June 2020." Zerner is not only a copyright lawyer, but he was also the star of Friday the 13th: Part III. Zerner's tweet can be read below:
