Disney, one of the biggest studios in Hollywood, has been sued by an animator for $10 billion claiming that it has stolen the idea for its Moana franchise from him. The copyright infringement lawsuit has been filed by Buck Woodhall against The Walt Disney Company in California federal court on Friday. Woodhalls has alleged that several elements from his decade old screenplay for an animated film called Bucky has been lifted by the studio without his consent.
Disney sued for $10 billion by animator
According to the lawsuit, Woodall claims that both Moana and Moana 2 are a direct rip of his original animated film called Bucky the Wave Warrior or Bucky.
In his lawsuit, Woodall claimed that Disney's Moana franchise exhibits “breathtaking” similarities to his script. Bucky was inspired by his “unique exposure” to Polynesian culture.
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Both Bucky and Moana follow “a teenager who defies parental warnings and embarks on a dangerous voyage,” according to the lawsuit.
The filmmaker has also named production company Mandeville Films and Jenny Marchick, head of feature development for DreamWorks Animation, in the lawsuit. Woodhall had reportedly brought the idea of Bucky to Marchick and her then-employer Mandeville Films in 2003. Woodhall alleges that the exec shared his copyrighted materials with Disney.
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The animator is now seeking “at least $10 billion” in damages and 2.5% of gross revenue earned by Disney from Moana 2 and related merchandise, which he claims would amount to “at least $5 billion.”
The lawsuit also adds that back in 2016 around the time of the release of Moana, Marchick allegedly denied that any materials Woodall sent her “made it beyond her desk.”
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Woodhall claims that Disney had his script as he had submitted the final draft to marchick back in 2011. The lawsuit further states that the protagonists in Moana and Bucky travel across Polynesian waters” to save an “endangered” island. Similarities between the two films also include “ancient spirits manifested as animals which guide and guard the living,” among several others.
Woodall is seeking a jury trial for the lawsuit and has registered Bucky assets, including a trailer, with the Writers Guild of America. He was granted federal copyright protections in 2004 and updated it in 2014.
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