Dave Franco and Alison Brie are currently under fire for copyright infringement.
The creative project being scrutinized as stolen work is their upcoming body-horror film, “Together” set to be released July 30th. According to a lawsuit filed by Studiofest producers, the famous couple stole the entire premise of their 2023 film, “Better Half” for their up and coming movie.
Here’s a breakdown of the whole situation.
What is the film ‘Together’ about?
“Together,” which stars real-life partners Alison Brie and Dave Franco, tells the horrifying tale of a married couple who no longer has that romantic connection that drew them together in the first place. While trying to repair their bond, the spouses get a little too close for comfort. (Using the analogy from Plato’s Symposium, the two literally become one- as in, their bodies slowly intertwine into a single entity.)
What is the Copyright Lawsuit Against Dave Franco and Alison Brie?
The Community alum and Disaster Artist star produced the upcoming film “Together,” in which they also play the leading roles. According to the copyright claim by the producers of “Better Half,” Franco and Brie were handed the script to the 2023 film, yet passed on the opportunity.
The lawsuit claims the couple rejected the script, since they wanted to have production rights. When the “Better Half” producers Jacklin and Beale heard about “Together,” they went to see it at Sundance in order to analyze the similarities. According to The Independent, it was a nightmarish scenario, since they realized their idea had been stolen by the famous couple.
“As the audience laughed and cheered, Jacklin and Beale sat in stunned silence, their worst nightmare unfolding,” the lawsuit reports. “Scene after scene confirmed that Defendants did not simply take ‘stock ideas’ or ‘scenes a faire’ but stole virtually every unique aspect of ‘Better Half’s’ copyrightable expression.”
According to Variety, the pitch for “A Better Half” was described as “a surreal, satirical comedy about a man and a woman who have a one-night stand, and wake up to see that they have become literally and physically attached.”
Yet instead of being a horror film like Franco and Brie’s movie, it was billed as a rom-com. Still, despite the change in genre, the similarities appear too striking to be ignored.
“In both ‘Better Half’ and ‘Together,’ the main characters struggle to navigate daily life as their physical attachment progresses and they start to control each other’s body parts,” the lawsuit claims. “While at first they desperately search for ways to detach their bodies – from medical intervention to chainsaws – by the end, they resign themselves to their conjoined existence.”
To top it all off, both “Together” and “Better Half” end the same way, with the couple reaching for a Spice Girls vinyl as they accept their fate.
Alison Brie and Dave Franco have yet to respond to the copyright infringement allegations.
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