Lee Daniels' Battle With Warner Over 'The Butler' Title Continues Via Email
Bad things happen when Warner Bros. gets crossed regarding copyright, that much is a given, but director Lee Daniels isn’t letting the company intimidate him. While the case against his movie The Butler is slowly getting dragged through the lawyer machine (because of a nearly century-old Disney short by the same name) Daniels is taking his appeal directly to the top. In a heartfelt email, obtained by Deadline, Lee pleads his case with Warner Bros Entertainment CEO Kevin Tsujihara in an attempt to secure the right to screen his own film. And that’s how you know Warner has more expensive lawyers than the Winestein company.
While it looks likely that Warner will eventually back down – despite the MPAA’s initial ruling to block the film from screening, an actual legal battle would be expensive and unnecessary for both parties – this one could drag on a while longer. Which means that the film’s August 16th release date is looking uncertain at best.