Dave Franco, Alison Brie sued for copyright infringement over film 'Together'
At least they can face it together.
Alison Brie and Dave Franco have been hit with a copyright infringement lawsuit over their upcoming film 'Together,' The Post can confirm.
The lawsuit was filed on Tuesday, May 13, by production company StudioFest, which claimed that they pitched the script to Franco and Brie's agents at WME in 2020 but the real-life couple allegedly 'passed on the offer to star in the project.'
11 The real-life couple is being sued for alleged copyright infringement.
WireImage
Fast-forward to January 2025, when StudioFest 'learned that Franco and Brie were producing and starring in a virtually identical film entitled Together, written and directed by another WME client—Michael Shanks.'
In the lawsuit obtained by The Post, the production company accused Brie, 42, and Franco, 39, of producing a 'blatant rip-off' of a 'Better Half,' a 2023 independent film written by Patrick Phelan and produced by Jess Jacklin and Charles Beale, which StudioFest claimed it had 'exclusive rights to develop, produce and exploit.'
11 According to the lawsuit, StudioFest sent a WME agent the script and offer for the couple to star in the film back in 2020.
NEON
11 However, Dave Franco and Alison Brie 'passed on the offer to star in the project,' according to the lawsuit.
NEON
In the court documents, StudioFest's attorney, Dan Miller, pointed out what he claimed to be the 'striking similarities' between both films, including their alleged plot points and the main concept of a couple who 'wake up to find their bodies physically fused together as a metaphor for codependency.'
'My client's original work was stolen,' Miller told The Post on Wednesday. 'The similarities between the two works are staggering and defy any innocent explanation.
'We intend to hold the defendants accountable,' he added, 'and look forward to trial.'
11 'My client's original work was stolen,' StudioFest's attorney told The Post on Wednesday.
NEON
11 It wasn't until January 2025 that StudioFest allegedly discovered the couple was starring in 'Together.'
NEON
11 The horror film was shown at this year's Sundance Film Festival and reportedly sparked a massive bidding war.
NEON
Jacklin and Beale created StudioFest, per the documents; however, the company is the only plaintiff listed in the lawsuit.
Brie and Franco, who married in March 2017, were allegedly approached to star in 'Better Half' after the casting director reportedly sent a script to the pair's agents at William Morris Endeavor on August 19, 2020 via email, per the lawsuit's exhibit reviewed by The Post.
The following day, Franco's agent informed the casting director that 'Dave was going to pass but thank you for thinking of him.'
According to the lawsuit, Brie also 'passed' on the offer.
11 The attorney claimed the flick is a 'blatant rip-off' to 'Better Half.'
NEON
11 StudioFest's attorney listed what he claimed to be the 'striking similarities' between both films.
NEON
'Together,' which hits theaters this summer, premiered in January at the Sundance Film Festival. It was sold to Neon for 'approximately $17 million' following a bidding war.
The newly filed lawsuit alleged that Brie and Franco 'rejected StudioFest's offer' for 'Better Half' because 'they wanted to produce the film themselves and have WME package the project with one of the agency's own writers.'
'In both 'Better Half' and 'Together,' the main characters struggle to navigate daily life as their physical attachment progresses and they start to control each other's body parts,' the suit charged while explaining the alleged 'blatant' similarities between the two horror flicks.
11 'Together' is set to be released this summer.
NEON
'While at first they desperately search for ways to detach their bodies – from medical intervention to chainsaws – by the end, they resign themselves to their conjoined existence,' the court documents read.
The suit also named WME, director/writer Michael Shanks, and Neon in the complaint.
StudioFest is asking to be awarded damages in the amount that a jury sees fit, as well as attorney's fees, and more.
11 The pair married in 2017.
NEON
Brie and Franco previously discussed 'Together' during an interview with The Hollywood Reporter before it premiered at Sundance earlier this year.
Franco said that he signed on to both produce and star in the movie after a meeting with Shanks.
Brie added that she 'lurked in the shadows' of Franco and Shanks' discussion and only signed on after her husband shared the script with her.
11 WME has since called the lawsuit 'frivolous and without merit.'
Jack Plunkett/Invision/AP
'I remember reading the script and immediately turning to Alison to say, 'I think we should act in this one together,' because the characters had been together for over a decade,' the 'Love Lies Bleeding' star said.
'I figured that our real-life relationship could lend itself well to that dynamic,' Franco added.
WME, the couple's talent agency, has since called StudioFest's complaint against them, their clients and Shanks 'frivolous and without merit' in a statement to THR.
'The facts in this case are clear and we plan to vigorously defend ourselves,' the agency added.
The Post has reached out to Brie and Franco's reps, as well as WME, for comment.
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