One of the greatest horror-comedies of all time, Dan O’Bannon’s 1985 movie The Return of the Living Dead ended up launching a franchise that to date includes five total movies, but it’s been nearly twenty years since the direct-to-video release of fourth and fifth installments Return of the Living Dead: Necropolis and Return of the Living Dead: Rave to the Grave.
What’s the latest on the franchise, you might be wondering? Well, we had learned just about a year ago that rights holders Living Dead Media were planning a Return of the Living Dead reboot with Steve Wolsh (Muck, Kill Her Goats) attached to direct, this information gleaned from the company’s official website. That website, it seems, is no longer online.
Living Dead Media said last year, “Our reboot of Return of the Living Dead will expand the existing world created by the original 5 films, while staying true to the R-rated, sci-fi, horror, dark comedy roots adored by fans of the cult classic around the world for the last 35 years.”
The company also noted on their official website at the time, “We are excited to resurrect this storied franchise for current fans and new generations of zombie fans.”
The plot on this one thickens this week, with Deadline reporting today that there’s now a legal dispute over the rights to The Return of the Living Dead. According to Deadline’s report, “A lawsuit over the rights to the intellectual property of the 1985 horror-comedy The Return of the Living Dead has been filed today in Los Angeles Superior Court.”
The company that filed the lawsuit is Living Dead Media LLC, and it’s been filed against a new company titled ROTLD Originals LLC that was formed on July 7, 2024. Oddly enough, this company was formed by The Return of the Living Dead star Beverly Dawn Hartley, aka Beverly Randolph, and Living Dead Media says she has no actual ownership rights.
Living Dead Media claims that the newly-formed ROTLD Originals LLC is “attempting to interfere with active and existing contracts between Living Dead Media and [its] licensees.”
The lawsuit states, “…simply being an actor in a film does not grant or convey any particular rights to that character or any other character or any rights to the Original Film, any derivative works, or related intellectual property. Ms. Hartley has no rights, title, or interest in the Original Film. Neither Ms. Hartley, ROTLD, nor any of the other purported members have any rights whatsoever in any of the characters or merchandise that is being sold by these licensees.”
Living Dead Media, according to court documents, “owns the copyright in and to the original screenplay and the underlying script for the The Return of the Living Dead film (Original Film) and other trademarks, including a United States registered trademark for Return of the Living Dead and other intellectual property related to the Original Film. It is axiomatic that LDM has the legal right to license and enter into other agreements related to its intellectual property.”
You can read the full 7-page court filing here.
While the Living Dead Media LLC website seems to be offline at the moment, an official merchandise shop operated by the same company does appear to be currently active online.
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