Ross Duffer and Matt, creators of “Stranger Things” along with Netflix have been sued by a company for stealing the idea that made the show a huge hit. The company has allegedly put allegations on both the parties. Also, they have explained why they believe that the concept is a stolen one. The company said the concept is totally similar to a screenplay, “Totem”.
“Stranger Things”: A concept copied?
The company, Irish Rover Entertainment, has filed the lawsuit on Wednesday in California federal court. In addition to this, the company has claimed that a lot of ideas and concepts have been copied and shown in “Stranger Things” from the original screenplay “Totem”. The screenplay, Totem, originally written by Jeffrey Kennedy. Also, the characters, dialogues, plot-setting, sequence, and even the copyrighted concept part was copied by the creators of “Stranger Things”.
According to the lawsuit filed against the creators of Stranger Things and Netflix, a person named Aaron Sims had a link with both the projects. However, as per the lawsuit, Sims only created the concept art for the initial two seasons of “Stranger Things”.
“Totem” and “Stranger Things”
So, as per the lawsuit reports, Kennedy has even shared the origin of his idea for “Totem”. Aaron Sims got the idea after losing his childhood friend to epilepsy. The lawsuit reads, ” During their childhood together in rural Indiana. Osthimer and Kennedy dealt with the constant threat of Osthimer’s ‘personal demon,’ epilepsy, which created ‘lightning showers’ in his brain. These lightning showers or seizures would send him to an alternate supernatural plane where the demon resided.”
The lawsuit also has an example that reads:
In “Totem,” one of the characters is a little girl named Kimimela or “Kimi” for short who has supernatural powers. Kimimela helps her friends find the portal gate to an alternate supernatural plane and helps them battle the plane’s inhabitants; a dark spirit named Azrael and his army of Blackwolf.
Netflix’s representative on the Lawsuit
The company, Irish Rover Entertainment is filing a lawsuit against copyright infringement and demanding unstated damages. Netflix’s representative told TheWrap, “Mr. Kennedy has been peddling these far-fetched conspiracy theories for years, even though Netflix has repeatedly explained to him that The Duffer Brothers had never heard of him or his unpublished script until he began threatening to sue them. After we refused to give in to his demands for a payoff, he filed this baseless lawsuit. Moreover, there is no shortage of people who would like to claim credit for creating ‘Stranger Things.’ But the truth is the show was independently conceived by The Duffer Brothers and is the result of their creativity and hard work.”
