Credit: DisneyA federal jury has ruled against the Walt Disney Company in a costly lawsuit, ordering the iconic media company to pay at least $250,000 in damages and a recommended $345,098 to Rearden LLC, a company that claims Disney used its copyrighted motion-capture technology in the live-action Beauty and the Beast (2017) remake.
According to court documents, a Northern California jury determined that Disney had used MOVA Contour software, a motion-capture tech developed by engineer Steve Perlman, without the permission of Rearden LLC, the company that owns its copyright.
Rearden LLC’s legal team accused Disney of using its proprietary technology improperly by working with Digital Domain, the visual effects company behind Disney projects like Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010), TRON: Legacy (2010), and multiple Marvel Cinematic Universe films. Rearden claimed that Digital Domain acquired MOVA Contour via a “rogue” employee and that it was improperly used to digitally animate the face of the Beast (portrayed by Dan Stevens).
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Beauty and the Beast grossed an estimated $1.2 billion at the box office, making it one of the highest-performing movies of all time (a list disproportionally dominated by Disney films). The remake of the classic 1991 animated film, widely credited as one of the high points of the 19990s Disney Renaissance, starred Emma Watson, Dan Stevens, Luke Evans, Josh Gad, Kevin Kline, Emma Thompson, Ewan McGregor, Stanley Tucci, Audra McDonald, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, and Ian McKellen.
The jury has agreed with the plaintiff in Rearden LLC v. Disney Enterprises Inc., although it declined to award Rearden the requested $38 million in damages. While an estimated $600,000 is a relatively small ding to a global mega-company like Disney, it comes at a time when the corporation is virtually surrounded by legal issues and crashing financials.
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This particular Disney lawsuit is just one of many that the company is facing, including multiple suits with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, a lawsuit involving disgraced former Miramax head Harvey Weinstein, and numerous property value suits. While Disney can afford to lose one lawsuit, it will have to be seen how many it can bear at a time.
Inside the Magic reached out to Disney for comment, but has not heard back by the time of publishing.
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