Yo, Joe! G.I. JOE: RISE OF COBRA Screenwriters Suing Paramount & MGM For $23M
According to David Elliot and Paul Lovett, screenwriters of G.I. Joe: Rise Of Cobra are claiming that much of the sequel, G.I. Joe: Retaliation, was as they put, "stolen," from their ideas. Paramount and MGM, you got some 'splainin' to do!
In their two-claim complaint (read it here) filed on May 3 in federal court, David Elliot and Paul Lovett are seeking $23 million in damages and claiming much of this year’s G.I Joe: Retaliation sequel was “stolen” from their ideas. With extensive side-by-side comparisons between the pitch the duo submitted to the companies in late 2009 and the actual Retaliation film, the heavily detailed 113-page complaint alleges that the two works are “substantially similar in every material way.” Claiming copyright infringement and breach of implied contract, Elliot and Lovett are seeking a jury trial in the case. The duo were the writers of the G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra movie back in 2009 along with Stuart Beattie. They are not credited on the 2013 blockbuster sequel.
They would like to get paid. Money, money, dollar, dollar... bill, son! To the tune of $23 million smackaroonies.
In this sequel, the G.I. Joes are not only fighting their mortal enemy, Cobra, they are forced to contend with threats from within the government that jeopardize their very existence. The film stars D.J. Cotrona, Byung-hun Lee, Adrianne Palicki, Ray Park, Jonathan Pryce, RZA, Ray Stevenson, Channing Tatum with Bruce Willis and Dwayne Johnson. Directed by Jon M. Chu, and produced by Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Brian Goldner, written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick based on Hasbro’s G.I. Joe® characters. NOW PLAYING!