Yonay Family Sues Paramount Over Top Gun: Maverick Claiming Copyright Infringement

The heirs of the original article that blockbuster film Top Gun was based on are suing Paramount Pictures over the sequel, Top Gun: Maverick. The heirs allege that Paramount is guilty of copyright infringement and therefore is illegally profiting off their father’s original work.

Yonay Family and Top Guns Story Copyright

In 1983, Ehud Yonay wrote an article that was featured in California magazine. It was titled “Top Guns” and was about jet pilots soaring through the sky.  Paramount Pictures eventually went on to secure the copyright to the magazine story from Yonay.  Yonay later died in 2012, and his family filed termination rights to the copyright transfer in 2018.

Termination, in copyright law, refers to the legal process of transferring a copyright back to the original creator of the work.  The purpose of the legal process of copyright termination is to allow creators to renegotiate their transfer agreements if their work “hit it big” and to allow these creators to avoid being locked in unfair deals due to a lack of initial bargaining power or means. Sections 203-204 of the Copyright Act lay out the process of copyright termination under U.S. law.

Yonay Family Sues Paramount Over Top Gun Maverick 

The sequel to Top Gun, Top Gun: Maverick, began production in 2018 and was shooting, at least, throughout 2020.  In 2020, the copyright reverted to the Yonay family.  And, according to the Yonay family, Top Gun: Maverick was not completed until 2021, which, they argue, makes the film subject to the Yonay family’s copyright. Without a licensing agreement, the Yonay family argues that Paramount is illegally profiting from their father’s work. As such, they have asked the court to order Paramount to halt distribution of the film as well as issue a ruling that the film is derivative of Yonay’s original work.

In response, Paramount has stated that there is no merit to the claims. It is likely that Paramount would seek to argue that Top Gun: Maverick is an original work and not based on the original article that its predecessor was based upon. Legal experts familiar with the case state that this will be a hard position for Paramount to argue as the two movies’ stories are indisputably interwoven, as the titles would suggest, and as such, it will be an uphill battle that Paramount faces. In the end, it is likely that Paramount will settle the dispute, but only time will tell.

Key Takeaways on Yonay Family Copyright and Paramount’s Top Gun Maverick

Paramount Pictures is being sued over its latest blockbuster, Top Gun: Maverick, based on allegations of copyright infringement over the original Top Guns article, penned by Ehud Yonay in 1983. The lawsuit is:

• asking for the court to cease distribution of the movie;

• find that Top Gun: Maverick is a derivative work of Yonay’s article; and

• agree that the movie finished wrapping up in 2021, and as such, is subject to their copyright claim.

For more information about copyright litigation, see our Software Protection & Copyright Services and Industry Focused Legal Solutions pages.