Judge Dismisses 'The Batman' Lawsuit, Grants Summary Judgment to WB and DC
The summary judgment concludes a saga I started covering two years ago.
‘The Batman’ copyright infringement lawsuit is over, for now.
Judge Paul A. Engelmayer granted defendant Warner Bros’ motion for summary judgment on all counts and granted third-party plaintiff DC Comics’ motion on copyright infringement, albeit denied its motion on copyright fraud.
Plaintiff Chris Wozniak sued Warner Bros. in late 2022, alleging that the 2022 superhero film ‘The Batman’ copied a story the freelance comic-book artist created in the ‘90s.
Inside 'The Batman' Lawsuit
A few months ago, I wrote an article detailing allegations of plagiarism concerning the film The Batman (2022) dir. Matt Reeves. Written by Reeves and Peter Craig (with Mattson Tomlin contributing to the screenplay), the story itself involves a detective, noir version of Batman (Robert Pattinson) investigating a series of brutal murders perpetrated by t…
Warner Bros. denied Wozniak’s allegations. DC Comics filed a motion to intervene, claiming that Wozniak’s story infringed on its copyright.
Warner Bros. Responds to 'The Batman' Lawsuit, DC Comics to Sue Plaintiff
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. counsel James D. Weinberger responded to The Batman lawsuit in court documents filed last Thursday. The defendant “denies that The Batman copied any portion of the Wozniak Batman Riddler Plot,” according to Weinberger. Meanwhile, DC Comics — represented by Kimberly B. Frumkin of Weinberger’s law firm, Fross Zelnick Lehrm…
Wozniak’s lawyer, R. Terry Parker, told Reuters, “We respectfully disagree with the court’s decision and are considering our next steps.”
Per Reuters, Warner Bros. and DC’s attorneys had no comment as of publication.
In his ruling, Engelmayer wrote, “A reasonable [jury] thus could not find the works at issue substantially similar.” Regarding Wozniak’s claims of copyright infringement in ‘The Batman’, Engelmayer described them as “standard, if not hackneyed, cinematic and literary tropes.”
Director Matt Reeves provided a declaration to support Warner Bros’ motion for summary judgment.
“I have never seen any story written by Mr. Wozniak nor have I ever met him,” Reeves said. “My first and only awareness of Mr. Wozniak… was his posting of inflammatory content on social media.”
According to Reeves, only executives at Warner Bros. provided input on his screenplay — written alongside Peter Craig and Mattson Tomlin, and Reeves was free to consider or disregard their notes.
Before filing the lawsuit, Wozniak first levied his claims on X/Twitter. I debunked each of his claims on this very blog.
No, Matt Reeves Did Not Plagiarize for 'The Batman'
When it comes to blockbuster franchises, director Matt Reeves has a formula for declining any potential offers; “insist on doing the story he wanted to do, the studio’s franchise-development apparatus be damned,” per Variety. Author’s note: I am currently in Florida on my vacation, so I am typing this article on my phone. Substack does not allow for link…
Since I started covering the allegations, I have received misogynist threats and remarks from Mr. Wozniak’s supporters. To say I’m glad his lawsuit is over (unless Mr. Wozniak appeals) is an understatement.