Settlement Ends Litigation Over “Thriller”

John Landis, director of “Thriller,” and George Folsey Jr., producer of “Thriller,” sued Michael Jackson and his company in January 2009.  They claimed that Jackson still owed them money for work they did on the 14-minute “Thriller” video.

Landis also claimed that he owned at least 50% of the “separated rights’ to the video, reasoning that this entitled him to “dramatic rights” derivations, including stage adaptations.  Before Jackson’s death, Jackson made a deal with the Nederlander Organization to produce a musical version of “Thriller.”  Landis believed that he would be due a cut of such a musical.  The production that Nederlander was going to be a part of never launched, and instead, the estate launched the Cirque du SOleil show, “Immortal.”  

On Friday, the estate released a statement indicating that the estate reached a settlement with Landis and Folsey Jr. on their claims, so litigation over “Thriller” should be concluded.

See Michael Jackson Estate Settles Lawsuit Over ‘Thriller’ Video, eurweb.com, Sept. 4, 2012.  

Special thanks to Brian Cohan (Attorney at Law, Law Offices of Brian J. Cohan, P.C.) for bringing this article to my attention.