Moana trial: Disney cleared of copyright infringement by jury

The five-year long battle between Disney and Buck Woodall about who actually created Moana seems to have ended this week, with a jury siding with Disney in the copyright trial and clearing it of the infringement suit by the screenwriter.

In 2020, Woodall filed a lawsuit against Disney alleging that Moana was actually based on his project, titled Bucky the Wave Warrior, Variety reported.

Starring Dwayne Johnson and Auliʻi Cravalho, Moana is an animated musical fantasy adventure film that hit screens in 2016. It was co-directed by John Musker and Ron Clements. Its sequel, Moana 2, returned to cinemas in November last year. Both the films were major box office successes.

What happened in court?

An eight-member jury, comprising six women and two men, found out unanimously that the makers did not have any access to Woodall's 2011 screenplay as well as earlier treatments. This came after a two-week trial at the Los Angeles federal court.

The jury deliberated on the matter for less than three hours.

"We are incredibly proud of the collective work that went into the making of ‘Moana’ and are pleased that the jury found it had nothing to do with Plaintiff’s works," Variety quoted a spokesperson for Disney as saying.

As the jury gave the verdict that the makers of the film did not have any access to Woodall's script, they were not required to address the question about similarities between the two projects.

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What did the plaintiff allege?

Based in New Mexico, Woodall in his lawsuit claimed that there were a series of similarities between his work, Bucky the Wave Warrior, and the 2016 film.

Among various allegations made by him include the argument that both scripts feature teenagers, who go on a dangerous voyage after defying the orders from their parents, and save a Polynesian island.

Few other similarities mentioned by him were a demigod with tattoos as well as surviving a storm of sea.

As per the court filing, Woodall claimed that he pitched his idea to the stepsister of his sister-in-law back in 2004. The woman used to serve as an assistant at a live-action production company.

The person later got in touch with Walt Disney Animation Studios and sought its submission, but later got to know that it will not do the same.

Disney's reply

Disney's lawyers argued in court that their work on Moana was held independently after years. It added that Woodall failed to provide any evidence about any of its filmmakers having access to his work.

They also highlighted various differences between the two works, such as Bucky being white, while Moana is a Oceanian.

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FAQs

1. What happens next in the Moana infringement suit?
Lawyers of Woodall claimed he was disappointed and was considering his options moving forward.

2. What about the other case filed by Woodall?
In January this year, Woodall filed a separate lawsuit and claimed that Moana 2 is also infringed on his screenplay. The matter is currently pending before the court.