On Tuesday, writer Lance Hill filed a lawsuit against Amazon.com, aiming to halt its upcoming remake of the 1989 film “Road House.” Hill argues that the film infringes on his rights to the original screenplay. In the lawsuit filed in a California federal court, Hill asserts that the production house proceeded with the remake without obtaining a license, despite him reclaiming the copyright for his screenplay.
He is seeking unspecified monetary damages and a court order to prevent the studio from distributing the movie without securing a new license. The debut of the remake, featuring Jake Gyllenhaal, is scheduled for March 8 at the South by Southwest festival in Texas, followed by its release on the Prime Video streaming platform on March 21.
In the lawsuit filed at the U.S. Central District Court in Los Angeles, Hill asserts that he submitted the necessary petition to the U.S. Copyright Office in late 2021. His request aimed to reclaim the copyright when United Artists’ claim was set to expire in November 2023, the original movie’s distributor featuring Patrick Swayze.
Despite Hill’s efforts, Amazon, the current owner of the “Road House” rights through its acquisition of MGM’s film library, allegedly disregarded his copyright claims. The lawsuit contends that Amazon proceeded with the remake, even taking steps to navigate the SAG-AFTRA strike, aiming to complete the movie before the copyright expiration. The legal action alleges that Amazon went to extensive lengths, including utilizing artificial intelligence (AI), to replicate actors’ voices in the 2024 remake during the SAG-AFTRA strike in the past year.
“The lawsuit filed by R. Lance Hill regarding ‘Road House’ today is completely without merit and numerous allegations are categorically false,” an Amazon MGM Studios spokesperson said in a statement. “The film does not use any AI in place of actors’ voices. We look forward to defending ourselves against these claims.”
The lawsuit aims to prevent the distribution of the film, slated to be accessible on Amazon Prime Video starting March 21.
