The estate of Superman is suing Warner Bros. Discovery to block James Gunn’s upcoming film from release in certain territories

The Son of Krypton could face his most fearsome foe yet, lawyers, as the estate of Superman creator Joseph Schuster moves to sue Warner Bros. Discovery and DC Comics, saying it does not have the rights to release James Gunn’s upcoming Superman film (among other works) in specific territories.

Per Deadline, the estate executor, Mark Warren Peary, filed a suit in Federal Court in the Southern District of New York, citing “damages and injunctive relief for Defendants’ ongoing infringement in Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Australia, as well as declaratory relief establishing the Shuster Estate’s ownership rights across relevant jurisdictions.”

According to the filing, the case is strong, as “Defendants are actively planning a major new Superman motion picture and other derivative works for imminent worldwide release.”

“We fundamentally disagree with the merits of the lawsuit, and will vigorously defend our rights,” said a WBD spokesman.

Some of you are probably saying, “How could this happen?” The case is complicated but boils down to a foreign copyright issue related to the original Superman character and his time-honored origin, co-authored by Jerome Siegel and Schuster. The suit highlights that the duo sold worldwide rights to DC’s predecessor in 1938 “for a mere $130 ($65 each), the copyright laws of countries with the British legal tradition—including Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Australia—contain provisions automatically terminating such assignments 25 years after an author’s death, vesting in the Shuster Estate the co-author’s undivided copyright interest in such countries.”

To complicate matters, “Shuster died in 1992 and Siegel in 1996. By operation of law, Shuster’s foreign copyrights automatically reverted to his estate in 2017 in most of these territories (and in 2021 in Canada). Yet Defendants continue to exploit Superman across these jurisdictions without the Shuster Estate’s authorization—including in motion pictures, television series, and merchandise—in direct contravention of these countries’ copyright laws, which require the consent of all joint copyright owners to do so.”

Woof! This situation does not sound like it will go away overnight. Beyond the film’s legal troubles, much is riding on Superman, as the upcoming adventure serves as the springboard for James Gunn and Peter Safran’s Gods and Monsters arc of the new DCU. In other words, the movie must “hit” in as many territories as possible. Restricting the film (or other projects related to the Man in the Red Trunks) could spell disaster for DC’s plans. Moreover, not releasing the movie in key territories would create a divide among fans, with entire swaths of Superman enthusiasts getting left out in the cold for one of the year’s most anticipated theatrical events of 2025.

It’s worth noting that there’s still time to resolve the matter, but it will require some fancy legal footwork. Seeing as I live in Canada, I’m freaking out a bit. Please don’t make me drive across the border to Detroit to see Superman in theaters. We’ll keep our eyes peeled for any updates about the case. In the meantime, does this lawsuit affect you? Let us know in the comments section below.

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