Actress Melissa McCarthy and Warner Bros. studio are being sued regarding copyright claims over Life of the Party. McCarthy starred in the 2018 comedy film, where she plays Deanna "Dee Rock" Miles.
Life of the Party follows Deanna's journey after she decides to return to college upon being dumped by her husband. However, the fact that she will attend the same university that her daughter Maddie is at leads to a series of misadventures as the pair navigate new territory. Once Life of the Party debuted, it was met with generally mixed reviews; although critics said that McCarthy stayed within her comfort zone with this lighthearted, fun film, they praised this fresh take on attending college. In addition to doing well at the box office, the film also went on to win McCarthy a People's Choice Award.
Unfortunately, it seems that party time is over for McCarthy and Warner Bros., as Deadline reports that they are being sued by plaintiff Eva Kowalski. Aside from McCarthy and Warner Bros., other defendants in the suit include director Ben Falcone and agent Sean Barclay, among others. Kowalski claims that Life of the Party actually ripped off her treatment and script College Mom, which is registered with the Writer's Guild of America. As a result, Kowalski is asking for $10 million in damages, as well as the destruction of all materials based on her work.
The 13-page suit filed with the Los Angeles Supreme Court claims that McCarthy and Warner Bros. knowingly repackaged Kowalski's work to use for their own purposes. The suit goes on to allege that the defendants did not compensate Kowalski in any way, shape, or form for her work. Although McCarthy and Warner Bros. have yet to respond to these allegations, this is far from the first time someone has sued over a Hollywood film ripping off the works of another. In fact, particularly notable lawsuits of this kind include one over Pirates of the Caribbean and another over Ted. Regardless, though, that doesn't make this situation any less complicated, especially if Life of the Party really did try to shortchange Kowalski.
While Life of the Party was a fun, breezy comedy, it's more than clear that the next few months for McCarthy will be anything but. Although it remains to be seen how the Los Angeles Supreme Court will rule, the lawsuit will be a sour legacy for Life of the Party to bear.
Source: Deadline
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