"Pussy Valley" Autobiography Appropriation Lawsuit over Starz' "P-Valley" Thrown Out

Wednesday, District Judge Mark Norris (W.D. Tenn.) accepted the July 30 recommendations from Magistrate Judge Annie Christoff in Johnson v. Hall:

Johnson [sued] …, alleging various claims arising from Defendants’ television series “P-Valley,” which Johnson claims “directly appropriated” her autobiography entitled “Pussy Valley.” According to Johnson, her autobiography recounts “her life as an exotic dancer, including her upbringing in the Graves Manor Projects in Memphis, Tennessee, colloquially know as ‘Pussy Valley.’” She allegedly “shared and discussed” her autobiography with Defendant Katori Hall, who, “in collaboration with Defendants Starz Entertainment and Lions Gate Entertainment, developed and produced the television series ‘P-Valley.’” …

The magistrate judge recommended that Johnson’s right of publicity and unjust enrichment claims be dismissed as preempted by the Copyright Act:

The autobiography … qualifies as a literary work that “falls within the range of materials protected by the Copyright Act.” … The Sixth Circuit applies a “functional test” to determine equivalency, which “asks whether the state claim seeks to protect rights similarly protected by the Copyright Act.” …

As Starz correctly asserts, [the right of publicity and unjust enrichment] claims are based on allegations that Starz “misappropriated [Johnson's] identity, life story, and creative expression for commercial gain without consent” and “profit[ed] from [her] life story without compensation.” Based on these allegations, each cause of action depends on Starz’s alleged use of Johnson’s original autobiography without her permission or without compensation. “As unauthorized publication is a core and exclusive right safeguarded by the Copyright Act,” the Court agrees that Johnson’s statutory right-of-publicity and unjust-enrichment claims are preempted by the Copyright Act.

The judge also recommended that the court reject Johnson’s invasion of privacy claim (to oversimplify slightly):

Johnson … does not allege that Defendants’ conduct was offensive to persons of ordinary sensibilities. In fact, she does not allege that Defendants’ conduct was offensive at all. She merely accuses Defendants of appropriating her “autobiography and life story.”

And the judge recommended the same as to Johnson’s defamation and false light claims:

Johnson has also failed to state a claim of defamation. As Starz correctly notes, “she does not claim (or support with plausibly alleged facts) that the alleged depiction of her in P-Valley is provably false or how it is false; and she does not allege that (or how) the series damages her reputation.”

Robb S. Harvey and Todd Ryan Hambidge (Holland & Knight LLP) and David Halberstadter and  Asena Baran (Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP) represent defendants.

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