James Delahunty
16 Sep 2018 22:11
Netflix has been hit with a lawsuit by a photographer over the alleged unauthorized use of a supercell photograph in Stranger Things and How It Ends.
Sean R. Heavey is a photographer from Montana. In 2010, he tracked a storm for hours as it crossed into Montana, taking four vertical panoramic photos together into one photo. The resulting storm cell image has been used in publications all over the world.
While watching an episode of Netflix' hit show Stranger Things, Heavey noticed something oddly similar about a cloud formation that is shown. Later, in an episode of Beyond Stranger Things, a concept art photo appears to be built from his photo of the storm cell from 2010.
Heavey took to Facebook to show the following comparison and ask if others thought the cloud formation used in Stranger Things is his photograph.
Additionally, in the Netflix film "How it Ends", the same photo seems to have been used for a supercell that hovers above the characters.
Netflix had previously responded to Mr. Heavey's complaint. "The only similarity that exists between the Artwork and Mr. Heavey's photograph, The Mothership (the 'Photo'), is the use of similar cloud formations. Copyright law, however, does not protect objects as they appear in nature," Netflix attorney Jarin Jackson wrote.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court in Great Falls, seeks damages, legal fees and the prohibition of the use of the image by Netflix again without expressed permission.
Read more at: Great Falls Tribune