Rights to “The Godfather” Sequel

Mario Puzo wrote the novel, “The Godfather,” and now there is litigation pending over publishing rights to a sequel. Paramount sued Anthony Puzo, his son, saying that the third sequel to “The Godfather” was not authorized, and they want to prevent the Estate from publishing it. Paramount claims that the company agreed to allow one single Godfather sequel after Mario’s death in 1999. The estate then published another novel in 2006 without Paramount’s approval, and now it plans to publish a third.

Anthony countersued in March claiming breach of agreement and that the contract between the Mario Puzo and the studio excluded book publishing rights. The parties will be trying to resolve the dispute through mediation. The U.S. District Judge, Alison Nathan, may hear oral arguments on Paramount’s motion to dismiss Anthony’s counterclaim this summer.

See ‘Godfather’ Sequel Published Amid Paramount’s Puzo Lawsuit, San Francisco Chronicle, May 11, 2012; see also Paramount Pictures v. Puzo, 12-01268, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan).

Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse (Professional Legal Marketing (PLM, Inc.)) for bringing this article to my attention.