Rockstar sues the BBC over GTA drama

Rockstar sues the BBC over GTA drama
David Scammell Updated on by

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Rockstar Games has filed a lawsuit against the BBC over its upcoming GTA drama Game Changer.

The lawsuit, which was filed via Rockstar’s parent company Take-Two Interactive, claims that the company has had “no involvement” in the project and that it has attempted to resolve a dispute with the BBC “multiple times” to help protect its intellectual property.

“Take-Two Interactive has filed suit against the BBC for trademark infringement based on their movie currently titled ‘Game Changer’ as it relates to Rockstar Games’ Grand Theft Auto video game series,” Rockstar said in a statement provided to IGN.

“While holders of the trademarks referenced in the film title and its promotion, Rockstar Games has had no involvement with this project. Our goal is to ensure that our trademarks are not misused in the BBC’s pursuit of an unofficial depiction of purported events related to Rockstar Games. We have attempted multiple times to resolve this matter with the BBC without any meaningful resolution. It is our obligation to protect our intellectual property and unfortunately in this case litigation was necessary.”

The 90-minute drama, which allegedly began filming late last month, tells the story of Rockstar’s rise to success, and details the conflict between Rockstar president Sam Houser and lawyer Jack Thompson, played by Daniel Radcliffe and Bill Paxton.

The programme is reported to be based on David Kushner’s book ‘Jacked: The Outlaw Story of Grand Theft Auto’.

Source: ign.com