Robert Downey Jr. facing copyright lawsuit, “elder abuse” over podcast

The celebrity podcast game is at its height, with series such as Smartless (Jason Bateman/Sean Hayes/Will Arnett), Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend (CoCo) and Fly on the Wall (Dana Carvey/David Spade) proving wildly successful in their genres. Now, Robert Downey Jr. is on the podcast scene…and facing a lawsuit over it.

Robert Downey Jr. is being accused of copyright infringement, breach of contract, and–you didn’t guess it–elderly abuse over the podcast The Sunshine Place. It should be noted that Downey Jr. does not host the podcast; rather, he executive produces the podcast through Team Downey, formed in 2010 by Downey Jr. and his wife Susan.

The accusations stem from a 77-year-old cult expert named Paul Morantz, who claims Robert Downey Jr. and Team Downey did not properly obtain rights to use Morantz’s materials found in his books for the podcast. Team Downey allegedly asked for digital copies of the book as an “investigative tool” but was “under the agreement [Team Downey] would not go forward [with the podcast] unless a deal was struck.”

The Sunshine Place is now seven episodes deep, premiering in August. It has also proven quite popular, currently sitting at #37 on Apple’s Top Shows as of publication. Of course, as popularity grows, it only brings more attention to the podcast and any surrounding news. Morantz may have a legitimate claim somewhere in there, but that news is just coming out as The Sunshine Place climbs the charts could raise some eyebrows.

The Sunshine Place “tells the mind-blowing, true-story of Synanon – one of America’s most cutting edge social experiments, turned into one of its most dangerous and violent cults – as it’s never been told before: by the people who lived it.”

Robert Downey Jr. has been mostly free of controversy since his MCU thrust back into the stratosphere. And now, with this podcast-related lawsuit, Iron Man may have to take on Iron Deficiency Man.

Robert Downey Jr.’s next film is Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer, due out July 21, 2023.