{"id":37359,"date":"2024-09-13T11:30:00","date_gmt":"2024-09-13T11:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=37359"},"modified":"2024-09-28T12:05:16","modified_gmt":"2024-09-28T12:05:16","slug":"creative-life-after-death-%e2%88%92-or-yes-you-can-control-spinoffs-from-beyond-the-grave","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/creative-life-after-death-%e2%88%92-or-yes-you-can-control-spinoffs-from-beyond-the-grave\/","title":{"rendered":"Creative life after death \u2212 or yes, you can control spinoffs from beyond the grave"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Naomi Cahn<\/a>, University of Virginia<\/a><\/em> and Reid Kress Weisbord<\/a>, Rutgers University – Newark<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michael Crichton<\/a>, the creator of \u201cER\u201d and author of \u201cJurassic Park,\u201d died in 2008. So why is his estate suing<\/a> Warner Bros. now?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It turns out that when Crichton agreed to develop the \u201cER\u201d series, he kept the right to approve \u2013 or not approve \u2013 of any sequels. That right didn\u2019t die with him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now that Warner is developing a new medical drama series, \u201cThe Pitt<\/a>,\u201d Crichton\u2019s estate is claiming<\/a> that the new show is simply a reboot of \u201cER.\u201d Although the new show has some similarities, including some of the same actors, Warner denies all the allegations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The dispute is the most recent in a series of high-profile legal cases brought to protect the legacy of a now-dead creative artist. And yes, even after death, artists can retain some control over their work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As law<\/a> professors<\/a> who teach about trusts and estates, we\u2019re following these cases so we can teach our students how authors, artists and other creative people can preserve their legacies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re particularly interested in three situations featuring celebrities, because they show how complicated it is to protect artists \u2013 especially in the age of artificial intelligence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contracts offer lasting control<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When a creator sells a film or TV project, the buyer usually seeks to acquire rights to produce sequels, remakes and spinoffs associated with the original intellectual property. Selling so-called derivative rights can allow the creator to maximize the sale price<\/a> and the buyer to exploit the creative idea<\/a> to the fullest extent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Crichton, however, had so much industry clout that he was able to negotiate more favorable contracts for some of his most famous projects. In 1994, for example, Crichton signed a contract with Warner Bros. that led to the production of the NBC medical drama \u201cER,\u201d<\/a> which enjoyed a 331-episode run while generating more than US$3.5 billion in revenue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because of Crichton\u2019s stature, he won a rarely granted frozen rights<\/a> provision requiring his consent for Warner Bros. to produce any \u201csequels, remakes, spin-offs and\/or other derivative works.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That frozen rights contract survived his death, as do contractual rights generally. So, on Aug. 27, 2024, following Warner Bros.\u2019 recently announced production of a new medical drama starring ER\u2019s original lead, Noah Wyle, Crichton\u2019s widow filed a lawsuit<\/a> that invoked the frozen rights clause to challenge \u201cThe Pitt\u201d as an unauthorized reboot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Copyright protection endures after death<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A copyright grants exclusive rights to the creator of a work authorship for the life of the author<\/a> plus 70 more years. After the author dies, the copyright may be enforced by their estate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recently, for instance, the estate of Isaac Hayes objected to the use of the late songwriter\u2019s \u201cHold On, I\u2019m Comin\u2019\u201d by Donald Trump\u2019s presidential campaign. According to a federal lawsuit<\/a> filed on Aug. 21, 2024, the Trump campaign has \u201cunlawfully performed\u201d the song at least 133 times since 2020, including at the 2024 Republican National Convention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Hayes estate demanded that Trump stop using the song and is seeking $3 million in royalties<\/a> for prior performances. On Sept. 4, the judge sided with the estate<\/a> in a preliminary ruling. The Hayes dispute shows the importance of copyright protections \u2013 and also the significance of music<\/a> in the 2024 presidential race, since Hayes\u2019 estate wasn\u2019t alone in objecting to Trump\u2019s use of its music. https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/6LIyg8wzgKc?wmode=transparent&start=0 An ABC News segment on the dispute over \u2018Hold On, I\u2019m Comin\u2019.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another recent case involved \u201cVultures 1,\u201d a new studio recording album collaboration between Ye \u2013 formerly known as Kanye West \u2013 and Ty Dolla Sign. According to the estate of Donna Summer, \u201cVultures 1\u201d contained an \u201cunauthorized interpolation\u201d of Summer\u2019s 1977 hit song \u201cI Feel Love<\/a>.\u201d Summer died in 2012<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a lawsuit<\/a> filed in February 2024, Summer\u2019s estate explained that it rejected a request to license the song because it \u201cwanted no association with West\u2019s controversial history.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite that refusal, West and Dolla Sign \u201cre-recorded almost verbatim the key, memorable portions of Summer\u2019s iconic song, used it as the hook for their own song, and released it to the public knowing they had tried and failed to secure legal permission from its rightful owners and had no legal right to do so,\u201d according to the complaint<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When the parties settled<\/a> in June 2024, the lawyer for Summer\u2019s estate stated publicly that the agreement didn\u2019t include permission to license the song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Publicity rights can protect an artist\u2019s legacy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Publicity rights<\/a> allow people to prevent the commercial use of their identity, including their name and likeness, without that person\u2019s consent. About 20 states<\/a> protect that right after death. Tennessee just extended its protections to prevent unauthorized use of an individual\u2019s voice and AI<\/a> applications with the so-called ELVIS act<\/a>. It is the first state<\/a> to do so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In early 2024, the estate of comedian George Carlin sued<\/a> creators of The \u201cDudesy\u201d podcast<\/a> for violating his publicity rights by releasing an AI-generated episode titled \u201cGeorge Carlin Resurrected.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carlin has been dead<\/a> for more than 15 years. Social media marketing teased a deepfake image of Carlin to promote an hourlong video titled \u201cGeorge Carlin: I\u2019m Glad I\u2019m Dead (2024).\u201d According to the complaint<\/a>, the video \u201cused an AI-generated sound-alike of George Carlin to read out and perform an AI-generated script written in Carlin\u2019s style of humor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The estate reached a settlement<\/a> in April 2024 that called for the podcasters to \u201cpermanently remove\u201d the video from the internet and discontinue use of Carlin\u2019s identity without the estate\u2019s consent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another recent case shows how estate planning can play a crucial role in how beneficiaries use publicity rights after the celebrity\u2019s death. When legendary recording artist Little Richard died in 2020, his will gave valuable intellectual property rights to nine people in a special provision that encouraged them to \u201ccooperate among themselves \u2026 to reach an agreement<\/a>\u201d regarding his postmortem publicity rights. Once they had created a plan, any beneficiary who interfered with the plan would \u201cforfeit\u201d their right<\/a> to any money from the plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Little Richard\u2019s brother Peyton Penniman wrote a letter to the buyer who had agreed to purchase Little Richard\u2019s publicity rights in which Peyton implied that the estate was \u201cbeing robbed.\u201d The next day, the buyer, who had tentatively agreed to a purchase price, backed out of the deal. Earlier this month, a Tennessee court held that Peyton\u2019s actions harmed the estate<\/a>, and, consequently, forfeited his rights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/a>
Little Richard performs on stage with his band in 1956. Michael Ochs Archives\/Getty Images<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Who holds copyright after death or who can profit from images of a dead celebrity has implications for the celebrity\u2019s legacy, but it also means that, even from the grave, they may be able to control what the rest of us see and hear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As AI allows each of us to create content, there are powerful lessons for what we can \u2013 and cannot \u2013 do in cultivating our own legacies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Naomi Cahn<\/a>, Professor of Law, University of Virginia<\/a><\/em> and Reid Kress Weisbord<\/a>, Distinguished Professor of Law and Judge Norma Shapiro Scholar, Rutgers University – Newark<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article is republished from The Conversation<\/a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Naomi Cahn, University of Virginia and Reid Kress Weisbord, Rutgers University – Newark Michael Crichton, the creator of \u201cER\u201d and author of \u201cJurassic Park,\u201d died in 2008. So why is his estate suing Warner Bros. now? It turns out that when Crichton agreed to develop the \u201cER\u201d series, he kept the right to approve \u2013 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44,"featured_media":37360,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[293,7,41],"tags":[438,6223,15,3875,885,891,886,860,536],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37359"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/44"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37359"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37359\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37613,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37359\/revisions\/37613"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37360"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37359"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37359"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37359"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}