Lucasfilm sued for copying Peter Cushing in Rogue One
Lucasfilm messed up with Empire and now they're in legal trouble. according to many timesThe production company behind it Star Wars, Indiana JonesAnd Willow Peter Cushing has been sued by his old friend Kevin Francis. Peter Cushing is the British actor who played Gran Moff Tarkin in 'Empire'. Star WarsThe controversy concerns Lucasfilm's use of Cushing's likeness to revive Tarkin Rogue One: A Star Wars Story2016 prequel Star Wars trilogy. The special effects recreating Peter Cushing as a deepfake were applied to actor Guy Henry, who provided the physical body for Tarkin Rogue OneLucasfilm claims it had the right to use Cushing's photo, as it was part of the contract he signed with the company when he made the film. Star Warsas well as “the nature of the special effects,” which is also related to that. However, Lucasfilm paid Cushing's estate “approximately £28,000,” which is $36,508.25, after speaking to Cushing's agent. Francis claims Cushing signed an agreement in 1993, a year before Cushing's death, that prevented anyone from using his image without Francis' permission. Francis is also suing Lunak Heavy Industries, which produced the film. Rogue Oneand is seeking £500,000, which is equivalent to $651,932.98, and is claiming “unjust enrichment.” Disney tried to get the case dismissed, but a judge in the U.K. recently ruled that the case could proceed.
You mean Disney/Lucasfilm acted against a dead man's wishes to make money because they assumed no one had rights to his photo and could do whatever they wanted? Get out of town! They're usually such by-the-bag people. I'm no legal expert, so this is mostly just me thinking, but I wonder if the fact that Disney and Lucasfilm paid Peter Cushing's estate will work against them; they knew someone should be compensated, but they didn't do their due diligence in figuring out the specific legalities of using Cushing's photo. Times The article states that Francis had previously sued the executors of Cushing's estate, who is no longer alive, as well as Cushing's management agency; if they can argue that the legalities were so complicated that no one knew what Peter Cushing really wanted, it could really help them. In allowing the case to proceed, the judge stated that the legalities were unclear because the practice is relatively new, so it's not easy to get any further right now. It's conceivable that this case will help set a precedent and establish clear guidelines for using a dead actor's likeness. The article also provides some examples of using special effects to recreate a dead actor in the past, such as Brandon Lee Crow and Oliver Reed the GladiatorBut those films were already in production, and the actors physically appeared in the roles in most of the films. It's not like they digitally recreated Brandon Lee Crow The remake was released a few weeks ago. It's been over twenty years since Peter Cushing died Rogue One Was made.
I suspect this will be part of the case, but from an outsider’s perspective, the fact that the recreated Tarkin Rogue One looked absolutely awful, and rubs salt in the wound. They made Peter Cushing look like a ridiculous cartoon, and the effect felt more like a joke than anything else. (And that's not even mentioning how that movie undermined Tarkin as a character.) They also made little Princess Leia look like a ghost on his ship, but at least Carrie Fisher was alive when they filmed it and presumably gave her consent. As AI improves – and it has improved really quickly, as anyone who's seen what Grok is capable of doing on X can tell you – bringing dead actors back to life is sure to become a more common practice, and a race to acquire likeness rights by studios will begin. And if you're a film fan, despite the ugliness of the practice, it's hard not to be momentarily fascinated by the prospect of watching, for example, Sean Connery will play James Bond again or by seeing Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall in another great noir film. (This, of course, is assuming those films will be good, which they won't be because the modern age will never allow suitable films starring those actors to be made.) But it really feels reprehensible, exploitative, and wrong, like the studios want to turn these greats into cash machines forever, who have earned the rest of their lives, who have lost their ability to consent to acting in a film and are forced to make money for Hollywood executives who may have never even met them. I don't know how this case will play out, but I'm even less sure what the landscape of cinema will look like as technology gives Disney and other studios the power to resurrect legends.
Let us know in the comments what you think about the Peter Cushing likeness case or the use of special effects to resurrect dead actors!
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