Disney-Pixar Facing Lawsuit Over Duke Caboom Likeness to Evel Knievel in ‘Toy Story 4.‘ Evel Knievel’s son (owner of the Evel Knievel estate) has filed a lawsuit against Disney, Pixar and subsidiaries regarding the use of the image and likeness to the late stuntman himself in the 2019 film, Toy Story 4.
According to the initial report from TMZ, “A company called K&K Promotions just filed suit against Disney, Pixar and whole a bunch of their subsidiaries … claiming the stuntman driver toy that Keanu Reeves voiced in the latest ‘Toy Story’ flick is a clear and obvious rip-off of the legendary American motorcycle daredevil.”
The character in question is none other than Duke Caboom, the “legendary” stunt toy who does bare a striking resemblance to Knievel as far as looks go. The plaintiff has stated that K&K Productions owns the rights to Evel Knievel’s likeness, persona, and brand and shared that Disney-Pixar did not reach out for permission to use Evel Knievel as inspiration for the “Canuck with all the Luck”. The document states that the cast and crew of the film were specifically instructed not to use Evel Knievel as a reference when talking about the new character Duke Caboom during press events for the film.
Duke Caboom was voiced by Keanu Reeves in the film and was one of several new characters featured in the film. The lawsuit has just been submitted in the past few days, so it may be some time before we hear a court date and ruling regarding the alleged infringement.
Toy Story 4 is currently available to stream on Disney+. Be sure to check back here at Chip and Co. for updates and all things Disney-Pixar!
Featured Photo Credit: Disney-Pixar
Source: ComicBook
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