Actor Terrence Howard portrays Empire’s Lucious Lyon. Image courtesy of Fox.
An Ashland resident is suing the creators of a popular television series, claiming a tale he recently published was the basis for the show.
Timothy J. Levi filed a lawsuit in Richmond federal court on March 3, alleging copyright infringement against Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp., Lee Daniels and Danny Strong, who created the Fox show “Empire,” as well as Richmond attorney Robert Walker.
Levi, 56, is seeking $1.5 billion in damages on the allegation that the defendants infringed upon his manuscript, “Unity Incorporated: The Mastermind,” which he self-published as a book last year.
“Empire” revolves around character Lucious Lyon’s struggle to put his life of crime behind him while building a successful record company. The show’s two seasons have been widely acclaimed since premiering in 2015. “Empire” has garnered Golden Globes and NAACP Image Awards and has been renewed for a third season.
Levi self-published his book last year.
The 14-page lawsuit describes the show as “strikingly similar” to Levi’s story: “Each work has a core theme of drama centered on the story of an African American man with a history of violence and raising himself without a mother and father from the ghetto and a life of crime into the world of the music industry.
“Both works also assert how the main character is a ‘gangster’ masquerading as a legitimate businessman.”
In a phone interview last week, Levi said it all started with a manuscript of his story that he claims fell into the wrong hands.
“Without my character, there is no show,” Levi said in a phone interview last week. “It’s my story.”
Levi said that around 2007 he got in touch with Walker, a criminal attorney with an office downtown, seeking help about publishing “Unity Incorporated.” Levi was in jail on drug charges at the time; he served 17 years on a 20-year sentence and got out in 2013. He spent his time in Baskerville Correction Center, about 90 miles southwest of Richmond. Levi said he and Walker first met in 1981 as delivery drivers for the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Levi claims that upon hearing about his manuscript Walker said he had connections in the entertainment world and could help get the book published. Levi alleges Walker made a copy of the manuscript before returning the original and shared the story with Daniels and Strong, who then went on to create “Empire.” Levi had the manuscript for the book registered with the U.S. Copyright Office in 2008.
The complaint lists the way “Empire” and “Unity Incorporated” share similar aspects in theme, plot, setting, characters and mood. Levi said his book was inspired by events taken from his life and of family members.
“For someone to take my characters and make a billion dollars from it – to me that’s unfair,” he said. “I hope to make the public aware that Hollywood does steal the little man’s ideas.”
Levi is representing himself in the lawsuit, after being unable to find a law firm that would take his case. He has taken paralegal courses at Reynolds Community College. In addition to his self-published novel, Levi said he is working on updating a screenplay he wrote in 1993.
He said he used several different statistics to come to the amount of damages he should seek. He said a lower-rated Fox show is being distributed in 152 countries, and that another show sold for $1.5 million.
Messages left with Fox, Walker and Daniels were not returned by press time. Strong could not be reached for comment. Daniels is known for the films “Precious” and “The Butler.”
“Empire” has been the target of several lawsuits. One is from the author of an allegedly similar tale, claiming he met with actor Terrence Howard, who plays Lyon on the show, for three hours three years before the show’s premier.
According to local attorney Ian Titley of Leading-Edge Law Group, who handles copyright infringement complaints, allegations against pieces of popular entertainment are not uncommon.
“Courts can be skeptical because it’s kind of easy to claim these things,” Titley said. “People can create the exact same work and it’s not infringement.”
To qualify as infringement, plaintiffs need to prove defendants had access to the work allegedly infringed on, which “can be extremely difficult to prove,” Titley said.
“Copyright protects the way an idea is expressed,” he said. “Just because you write that story doesn’t give you a monopoly over that story line.”
Actor Terrence Howard portrays Empire’s Lucious Lyon. Image courtesy of Fox.
An Ashland resident is suing the creators of a popular television series, claiming a tale he recently published was the basis for the show.
Timothy J. Levi filed a lawsuit in Richmond federal court on March 3, alleging copyright infringement against Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp., Lee Daniels and Danny Strong, who created the Fox show “Empire,” as well as Richmond attorney Robert Walker.
Levi, 56, is seeking $1.5 billion in damages on the allegation that the defendants infringed upon his manuscript, “Unity Incorporated: The Mastermind,” which he self-published as a book last year.
“Empire” revolves around character Lucious Lyon’s struggle to put his life of crime behind him while building a successful record company. The show’s two seasons have been widely acclaimed since premiering in 2015. “Empire” has garnered Golden Globes and NAACP Image Awards and has been renewed for a third season.
Levi self-published his book last year.
The 14-page lawsuit describes the show as “strikingly similar” to Levi’s story: “Each work has a core theme of drama centered on the story of an African American man with a history of violence and raising himself without a mother and father from the ghetto and a life of crime into the world of the music industry.
“Both works also assert how the main character is a ‘gangster’ masquerading as a legitimate businessman.”
In a phone interview last week, Levi said it all started with a manuscript of his story that he claims fell into the wrong hands.
“Without my character, there is no show,” Levi said in a phone interview last week. “It’s my story.”
Levi said that around 2007 he got in touch with Walker, a criminal attorney with an office downtown, seeking help about publishing “Unity Incorporated.” Levi was in jail on drug charges at the time; he served 17 years on a 20-year sentence and got out in 2013. He spent his time in Baskerville Correction Center, about 90 miles southwest of Richmond. Levi said he and Walker first met in 1981 as delivery drivers for the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Levi claims that upon hearing about his manuscript Walker said he had connections in the entertainment world and could help get the book published. Levi alleges Walker made a copy of the manuscript before returning the original and shared the story with Daniels and Strong, who then went on to create “Empire.” Levi had the manuscript for the book registered with the U.S. Copyright Office in 2008.
The complaint lists the way “Empire” and “Unity Incorporated” share similar aspects in theme, plot, setting, characters and mood. Levi said his book was inspired by events taken from his life and of family members.
“For someone to take my characters and make a billion dollars from it – to me that’s unfair,” he said. “I hope to make the public aware that Hollywood does steal the little man’s ideas.”
Levi is representing himself in the lawsuit, after being unable to find a law firm that would take his case. He has taken paralegal courses at Reynolds Community College. In addition to his self-published novel, Levi said he is working on updating a screenplay he wrote in 1993.
He said he used several different statistics to come to the amount of damages he should seek. He said a lower-rated Fox show is being distributed in 152 countries, and that another show sold for $1.5 million.
Messages left with Fox, Walker and Daniels were not returned by press time. Strong could not be reached for comment. Daniels is known for the films “Precious” and “The Butler.”
“Empire” has been the target of several lawsuits. One is from the author of an allegedly similar tale, claiming he met with actor Terrence Howard, who plays Lyon on the show, for three hours three years before the show’s premier.
According to local attorney Ian Titley of Leading-Edge Law Group, who handles copyright infringement complaints, allegations against pieces of popular entertainment are not uncommon.
“Courts can be skeptical because it’s kind of easy to claim these things,” Titley said. “People can create the exact same work and it’s not infringement.”
To qualify as infringement, plaintiffs need to prove defendants had access to the work allegedly infringed on, which “can be extremely difficult to prove,” Titley said.
“Copyright protects the way an idea is expressed,” he said. “Just because you write that story doesn’t give you a monopoly over that story line.”
I had a similar experience about 15 years ago. After one of my novels was published, my agent shopped it to various television and movie producers. A reputable production company optioned it, and I cooperated with an associate producer who was working on adapting the story for tv. Ultimately, the option expired and the movie adaptation was never produced. A couple of years later, I was stunned to see a large section of my book plugged into the middle of a television movie as a sort of filler. The names hadn’t even been changed. Ian Titley is right. Plaintiffs need… Read more »
@Sheila Berry In your case, what was the outcome if you don’t mind me asking? You see these type of lawsuits all the time….
Such an original concept. I’m amazed nobody thought of it until now. Oh wait…the hip-hop community has been saturated with criminally-minded characters since its inception in the 1980s. Good luck. I hope you don’t have to pay your attorneys unless you win the case.