Predator copyright lawsuit ends with amicable resolution

U.S. copyright law says that authors can regain the copyright to their works after 35 years – which is why Friday the 13th screenwriter Victor Miller has successfully terminated his copyright transfer and gained the copyright to the first F13 film in the United States. Last year, we heard that Predator screenwriters Jim and John Thomas had filed a lawsuit to gain the copyright to the 1987 film – which didn’t sit well with the Predator franchise’s owners at Disney / 20th Century. While the Friday the 13th copyright battle went on for years and the franchise is still in limbo because no new movies can be made until Miller and franchise producer Sean S. Cunningham reach some kind of settlement / agreement, the Predator franchise is not going to get bogged down by the same issues. Reuters reports that the Predator lawsuit has already ended with an “amicable resolution”.

Disney’s 20th Century Studios and the brothers who wrote the screenplay for the original “Predator” movie have agreed to drop their copyright dispute, according to a Wednesday filing in Los Angeles federal court. The dismissal follows a December notice that the parties had settled their claims over James and John Thomas’ attempt to reclaim their share of Disney’s rights in their screenplay.

The brothers’ attorney Marc Toberoff of Toberoff & Associates said in a Wednesday email that the parties had come to an “amicable resolution.”

With that settled, Disney can move forward with the summer 2022 Hulu release of the new Predator film, which is titled Prey. Directed by Dan Trachtenberg and starring Amber Midthunder, Prey tells the story of

Naru, a skilled female warrior who fiercely protects her tribe against a highly evolved alien predator.

Marvel should also be able to move forward with the publication of a Predator comic book series that was delayed right around the time the Thomas brothers filed their lawsuit.