Top Gun: Maverick was released to strong reviews on May 27, 2022. It’s a sequel that fans of the original were waiting years to see. Now, the family of Ehud Yonay is coming forward with copyright claims. Almost 40 years ago, Yonay—at the time a writer and military student—wrote an article about fighter pilots.
Paramount Slapped with Copyright Infringement Claim Over ‘Top Gun: Maverick’
Yonay’s article appeared in a May 1983 issue of California magazine and was used as the basis for Top Gun after Paramount approached him about the rights sometime later. It’s a well-known story for a well-loved film. The rights were picked up before 1986 and that is where this case hinges.
According to Yonay’s family, Paramount only had film rights to the story for 35 years. Top Gun was filmed throughout 1985 and released in May 1986. Filming was a tighter process in the 1980s, folks. Top Gun: Maverick falls outside of that window just by the time that passed. Or has it?
There were reports that Top Gun: Maverick finished up filming in 2019 meaning Paramount will have to claim that post-production was done before January 2020. The studio should be able to easily prove that point.
A more interesting point is if the sequel is still based on Yonay’s story. There’s no dispute that the original was based on Ehud Yonay’s story. However, it wasn’t a direct retelling of the story or a biopic. It was based on the article while still being its own thing. Once we get to Maverick, things would get harder for the Yonay family.
Paramount could argue that Maverick is based on Top Gun but again, it’s not a retelling or biopic of Yonay’s later years. The film takes place after the fictional events of the original, not decades years after Yonay sold the rights.
On both points, Yonay’s family claims that not only was Top Gun: Maverick finished in May 2021 but it also features elements from the writer’s later life. So far, Top Gun: Maverick has raked in roughly $560 million at the box office. Also, the family of Yonay filed to regain the rights in 2018 as the power to cancel a copyright transfer came into effect in 2020. In their filing, it’s claimed that Paramount didn’t get a new license for the story.
Where do you sit on this one? Did Paramount fail to pass its work to the front before the deadline? Or is the Yonay family reaching and looking to cash in on that Maverick money?
Let us know down below!
CHECK IT OUT: To get The Overtimer’s Hottest Stories, Breaking News and Special Features in your email, CLICK HERE! Also, subscribe to Daily Soap Dish on YouTube for reality TV news and views and hit the bell icon for updates!
