Thread: James Cameron Sued Over Avatar

Well when somebody makes several billion dollars off of Pocahontas in Space, it's not really surprising that somebody goes for the moneygrab.

That's pretty fucked up what they did. It wasn't Cameron himself but Lightstorm Entertainment as a whole. This is something you really have to look out for in Hollywood but this guy didn't even make any rookie mistakes, he tried to market the script professionally and they still had the balls to rip him off. They deserve to be sued for every last penny.

Marvo - The original story was about an environmentally themed, CGI movie about corporations plundering a moon in 2068. They're not suing cause its got pocahonta's story. Lightstorm actually stole someone's script idea after telling them it wouldn't sell.

Really depends on the details of the script he wrote. The idea of an environmental parable in space isn't in itself novel enough to be a subject of copyright infringement.

Originally Posted by Omnis Dei

That's pretty fucked up what they did. It wasn't Cameron himself but Lightstorm Entertainment as a whole. This is something you really have to look out for in Hollywood but this guy didn't even make any rookie mistakes, he tried to market the script professionally and they still had the balls to rip him off. They deserve to be sued for every last penny.

Marvo - The original story was about an environmentally themed, CGI movie about corporations plundering a moon in 2068. They're not suing cause its got pocahonta's story. Lightstorm actually stole someone's script idea after telling them it wouldn't sell.

Avatar was popular because of the avatar concept. Sure, they used some of his ideas, but if you've actually watched Avatar, you should know that there is much more to it than what you write.

Really depends on the details of the script he wrote. The idea of an environmental parable in space isn't in itself novel enough to be a subject of copyright infringement.

"An environmental parable in space" was not the extensiveness of the copyright.

The Pocahontas story would normally be what could save them, not screw them, as it could mean they threw out the original writer's story arc in exchange for a cliche. I don't know the details of the guy's script but the article reads

According to the suit, Ryder's story involved a protagonist who's sent to the moon of a distant planet by an Earth-based mining corporation; moreover, the details of the project called for 3-D effects to "infuse the story."

which sounds like pretty clear idea theft to me. And yes, you can copyright something as basic as a premise if you can prove it's original. While Avatar's story was Pocahontas, the premise was still original. Well... original enough.

Why are there no dates in that article?

Pocahontas?? Avatar was practically a scene for scene remake of FernGully.

I guess this will delay the next Avatar....mother fuckers!

Honestly, they'll probably just buy the rights off the guy and settle. A second Avatar movie would make so much money, it's best to just pay this guy off and move on with life. Win-win, really.