Disney hit with lawsuit over ‘Muppet Babies’ reboot. Writer says his ideas were stolen
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The original screenwriter for the 1980s TV series “Muppet Babies” is suing The Walt Disney Co. for copyright infringement over its rebooted show.
n a federal lawsuit filed Thursday in California, Jeffrey Scott says Disney stole some of his ideas for its show that debuted in 2018 on Disney Junior. He said he created and registered the copyright nearly four decades ago for the original show’s “production bible,” which defines the elements of the show.
The “production bible” created the child versions of the characters, the nursery setting and the new character, Nanny, the lawsuit says.
“Disney has now saturated the reboot with the elements Scott created or co-created without giving Scott any credit or compensation for its wholesale use of his work,” according to the lawsuit.
NBC Los Angeles reported Thursday that a representative for Disney could not be reached for comment.
Scott wrote scripts for all but four of the original “Muppet Babies” episodes during its first three years, earning him three Emmy awards, the lawsuit says. He has also does screenwriting for “Spider-Man,” “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,” Dragon Tales” and other popular animated shows.
Disney met with Scott in 2016 in its early stages of developing the reboot, according to the lawsuit. Scott sent Disney ideas for the new show that it later used, but he says he was never compensated.
“The new episodes incorporate the elements in Scott’s bible and the concepts he presented in 2016, and plagiarize dialogue, plot points, images and many other elements from Scott’s original scripts,” the lawsuit says.
Scott sued Disney for copyright infringement, breach of contract, breach of implied contract and fraud, court documents show. He seeks for Disney to pay him damages and for the company to add a credit for him in each episode.
There have been 41 episodes aired of the “Muppet Babies” reboot and a third season is on the way according to IMDB. It can be watched on Disney Junior and Disney+.
