Predator Screen Writers Suing Disney For Control of IP

When Disney bought FOX, one of the characters that instantly became a Disney Princess was The Predator. Plans were immediately drawn up for a new comic book series at Marvel and a new movie from the director of Cloverfield Lane. However, The Hollywood Reporter is currently reporting that the writers of the original Predator film, Jim and John Thomas, are suing the house of mouse to regain control of the franchise.

According to the report, they are “are seeking to exploit copyright law’s termination provision, which allows authors to cancel transfers after waiting a period of time, typically 35 years for newer works.“

In their response, 20th Century, the new film branch of Disney that handles former FOX franchises had this to say:

“While federal statutory copyright law endows certain grantors, like defendants [the Thomas brothers], with copyright termination rights, such rights may only be exercised in accordance with the statute’s requirements, including provisions delineating when termination notices may be served and when the termination of rights becomes effective. “Defendants’ notices fail to comply with these statutory requirements and are invalid as a matter of law.”