Disney and Universal Clash with Midjourney Over Allegations of Copyright Infringement

Disney and Universal have accused the image-generating AI startup Midjourney of stealing and copying characters owned by the studios.

«Midjourney is a typical copyright infringer and a bottomless pit of plagiarism,» states the lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for Los Angeles.

According to the allegations, the AI project used «countless» legally protected works to train its software and subsequently allowed users to create images that «clearly reference and replicate well-known characters from Disney and Universal.»

The studios attached comparative photographs of original works alongside AI-generated copies. Notable characters included Darth Vader from «Star Wars,» Elsa from «Frozen,» Homer from «The Simpsons,» Shrek, and other popular figures.

The lawsuit describes the plagiarism from generative AI as a problem that «threatens to overturn the fundamental principles of American copyright law, which define the U.S. leadership in film, television, and other forms of creative arts.»

«We are optimistic about the potential of AI technology and how it can be responsibly used as a tool to further human creativity. However, piracy is piracy, and the fact that it is conducted by an AI company does not make it any less illegal,» stated Disney’s chief counsel, Horacio Gutierrez.

A representative from NBCUniversal, Kim Harris, described the lawsuit as a fight for «the hard work of all artists whose creativity entertains and inspires us, as well as for the significant investments we make in our content.»

The corporations are seeking damages from Midjourney but have not specified an amount. Additionally, they are asking the court to prohibit the AI firm from «offering its future video service without appropriate copyright protections.»

The documents highlight that the startup earned around $300 million in 2024. According to the studios, Midjourney also ignored pre-litigation requests to cease its violations.

In an interview with the BBC, Syracuse University law professor Shubha Ghosh noted that U.S. intellectual property law allows for the use of others’ works if the final product contains new details.

However, he believes many of the images generated by Midjourney «appear to be mere copies of copyrighted characters that might be placed in various settings or different backgrounds.»

«It does not seem that they are being transformed in any creative or inventive manner,» Ghosh added.

Attorney Randy McCarthy from Hall Estill remarked that «no lawsuit is without its complexities, and this also applies to Disney and Universal»:

«There are several questions, such as the terms of service of Midjourney and the fundamental fair use analysis that the court will need to clarify before we can predict the likely outcome.»

Rights holders have long fought against AI companies. In September 2023, the Writers Guild of America accused OpenAI of using licensed works to train its language models.

In August 2024, a class-action lawsuit was filed against the AI startup Anthropic in federal court in California for copyright infringement.

It’s worth noting that in 2022, Disney researchers developed an AI tool designed to de-age actors.