Copyright of Top Gun is challenged by the heirs of the magazine author whose article was inspired by the original film.
Original Top Guns based on a 1983 article in the journal California. On Monday, the author’s heirs sued Paramount Pictures, claiming that the studio is profiting greatly from the sequel, Top Gun: Maverickalthough it no longer holds the copyright to the magazine story.
The author of the article, Ehud Yonay, passed away in 2012. His widow, Shosh Yonay and son, Yuval Yonay, filed a notice in 2018 reclaiming the story’s copyright, effective in 2020.
In the lawsuit, they claim that Paramount distributed Top Gun: Maverick without applying for a new license to use the base material. The lawsuit seeks damages as well as an injunction against Paramount from distributing the film.
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Top Gun: Maverick is currently the highest-grossing film in cinemas, with a gross of nearly $300 million (US$417 million) in the US alone.
The Yonays are represented by Marc Toberoff, an attorney veteran in copyright termination battles with major studios. He is currently engaged in a lawsuit against Marvel, challenging the termination notices he filed on behalf of five comic book creators.
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In that case, the authors both claim fractional ownership of the copyrights in question, so the issue is primarily focused on whether they will be subject to additional compensation – not whether Can Marvel be blocked from exploiting related characters?
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Under Section 203 of the Copyright Act, authors have the right to terminate the transfer of copyright after a period of 35 years.
Top Gun: Maverick went into production in May 2018 and was originally slated for a July 2019 release. The film was postponed for a year, to June 2020, to allow more time to work on the series. flight, and then delayed for another two years due to the pandemic.
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The lawsuit alleges that the film wasn’t actually completed until May 2021, more than a year after the termination notice went into effect.
Paramount responded with the comment, “These claims are null and void and we will vigorously defend ourselves.”
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Cast of Top Gun: Then and Now
