Disney sued by animator claiming the studio stole his screenplay for Moana and its blockbuster sequel

Disney is being sued by animator Buck Woodall for allegedly stealing the idea for Moana 2, as well as for the 2016 original.

In a lawsuit filed in California federal court on January 10, Woodall claims the company stole pieces of a screenplay he wrote for an animated film titled Bucky for Moana 2.

He alleges that both his screenplay and that of the animated film take places in a storied Polynesian village and are centered around young adults who seek to salvage their homes while coming across spirit animals along the way. 

The lawsuit comes after a November court hearing relieved the studio from an identical lawsuit by Woodall over the first Moana film, as he had waited too long to file his suit, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

However, the release of Moana 2 granted him the ability to again take legal action.

In the initial case, the court declared that a jury should decide whether the projects are significantly similar. 

It also came to the conclusion that someone at Disney Animation TV could have seen Bucky’s copyrighted materials before development on Moana began.

Per THR, US District Judge Consuelo Marshall wrote in the order, ‘There is a disputed issue of genuine fact regarding substantial similarity and striking similarity between the parties.’

Dating back to 2003, Woodall claims he presented the screenplay and a trailer for Bucky to Jenny Marchick, former Mandeville Films Director of Development.

According to the animator, Marchick, who is now DreamWorks Animation’s Head of Development for Features, asked for materials like production plans, character designs and storyboards.

Per his recollection, the exec notably assured him she could greenlight the film.

The complaint details that Mandeville had a first look deal with Disney, along with offices at its Burbank studio.

The legal filing highlights parallels between Moana and Bucky, including that both share a theme of recognizing the Polynesian belief that ancestors can be manifested as animals. 

Additionally, each protagonist in the respective screenplays has a narrative that begins with a turtle, as well as a storyline with a meaningful and symbolic necklace.

According to the complaint: ‘Disney’s Moana was produced in the wake of Woodall’s delivery to the Defendants of virtually all constituent parts necessary for its development and production after more than 17 years of inspiration and work on his animated film project.’

It goes on to claim that ‘Moana and her crew are sucked into a perilous whirlpool-like oceanic portal, another dramatic and unique device–imagery found in Plaintiffs materials that could not possibly have been developed by chance or without malicious intentions.’

Woodall is seeking damages to the staggering tune of $10 billion, or equivalent to 2.5 percent of Moana’s gross revenue, as well as a court order preventing continued infringement of his copyrights.

In Buck’s prior lawsuit, Disney countered the allegations and claimed no one involved in the development and execution of Moana viewed Woodall’s materials. 

‘Moana was not inspired by or based in any way on [Woodall] or his “Bucky” project, which I learned of for the first time after this lawsuit was filed,’ said Moana director Ron Clements in a court declaration.

Disney also handed over documents including story ideas, pitch materials, written research, travel journals and scripts related to the conception of the film.