A federal jury in Los Angeles has made a decision against a man’s claims of copyright infringement over Disney’s animated film Moana.
The verdict was announced on Monday after a two-week trial in the federal court.
An eight-member jury unanimously gave up that Disney did not have access to Buck Woodall’s manuscript in 2011 Bucky the Wave Warrior or past treatments, AP News reported.
For those who have not been daring, Woodall brought the trial in 2020 and claimed both projects with copyright violation as they were centered around teens who defy their parents to embark on dangerous trips to save a Polynesian island.
He also quoted other similarities, including Celestial navigation, a tattooed demigod and survived a storm at sea.
His filing stated that he had beaten the story in 2004 to his sisters’ stepsists, who was then assistant at a live-action production company at Disney Lot.
The assistant later asked if Walt Disney Animation Studios would accept a submission but was informed that it would not.
Disney defended that Moana was independently developed years later, and no evidence connected Buck’s work to the filmmakers.
“Bucky is white; Moana is oceanic. Bucky is from the mainland US; Moana is originally for the fictional island of Motunui,” argued the entertainment company’s legal team in a proposal.
“Bucky lives in modern times; Moana lives millennia in the past. Bucky is an ordinary teenager; Moana is the future boss of her people. Bucky will learn to surf, while Moana will continue her people’s proud history as the greatest ocean trips ever known to the world.”
Buck’s lawyer has said he would consider his client’s options.
However, Buck also filed a separate trial in January this year, where he claimed Moana 2 violating his work. The case is still pending.
