Whenever a successful franchise earns millions of dollars, someone is going to want a piece of the dough. Pixar was sued over Finding Nemo and Monsters, Inc. for stealing ideas. J.K. Rowling faced her own share of legal disputes with Harry Potter, so many that they have their own Wikipedia entry. Disney sued Phase 4 for stealing Frozen’s design and logo, but it’s surprising that someone waited for almost an entire year to pass before suing Disney.
Isabella Tanikumi is suing the Walt Disney Company to the tune of a cool $250 million for stealing ideas from her autobiography Living My Truth. Tanikumi also wants Disney to cease and desist any further distribution of the film and related merchandise.
Tanikumi’s lawsuit is already slipping on the ice, according to CNN Money. She is basing her claim off similar plot elements, including a sister relationship, betrayal, and open doors/gates, and a village.
If that is approach is taken, anyone who has a sister, lived in a village, opened a door, and been betrayed could sue Disney. Tanimkumi’s lawsuit is probably only getting media attention, because of the movie’s popularity and possibility to get more readers to a news site.
This quote from a Disney PR rep says it all:
“When asked for comment, a Disney spokeswoman evoked the film’s most famous tune in this e-mail response: ‘This is beyond ridiculous, she needs to let it go.'”
