‘Superman’ estate sues Warner Bros to block upcoming film from release in certain countries
The estate of Superman co-creator Joseph Shuster has filed a lawsuit against Warner Bros Discovery, claiming that it does not have the rights to release its upcoming film in Canada, the UK, Ireland, and Australia.
James Gunn’s movie is slated to arrive in cinemas on July 11th, but that may change now that a legal dispute has been thrown into the mix. The issue is a complex patchwork of copyright laws in various countries.
Shuster and Jerry Siegel created the Superman character in 1938 and sold the rights to the predecessor of DC comics for a scant $130. While that would usually mean that DC (now owned by Warner Bros.) would own the copyright forever, it is more complicated in places like the UK and Canada, where copyright ownership reverts the creator’s heirs at a certain point after the creator’s death (25 years, in the case of the UK).
Shuster died in 1992, meaning that his estate earned the copyright by default in 2017. As a result, Mark Warren Peary, executor of Shuster’s estate, is claiming that Warner Bros does not have the authority to release its upcoming film in territories where the copyright has reverted to the late artist’s heirs.
As reported by Deadline, the estate is requesting a trial by jury to determine the outcome. It is seeking to block the film from being released in the aforementioned countries as well as additional damages for the profit that Warners has already earned in the lead-up to the film’s release.
In response, a studio spokesperson said that Warners fundamentally disagreed with the merits of the lawsuit and would “vigorously defend” its rights.
The upcoming instalment in the Superman franchise marks a new chapter for the character and the studio. Newcomer David Corenswet stars as the titular superhero in what is expected to be a multi-film run. When the first trailer for the movie was released in December, it became the most watched in the history of DC Comics movies.
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