Gizmodo editor-in-chief Daniel Ackerman has filed a lawsuit in federal court in Manhattan accusing Apple, Tetris Company, and others of making a Tetris film without permission from his book about the famous Tetris video game. The legal case claims they copied, competed unfairly, and messed with business relationships. “The Tetris Effect: The Game That Hypnotized the World” was out in 2016. It covers the game’s early days and the battle for licensing rights. The author wrote it in the manner of a Cold War spy thriller.

Insights into the Battle Behind Tetris Film

Ackerman gave the Tetris Company an advance copy of his book in 2016. Instead of a deal, he got a stern letter that stopped him from making movies or shows from his writing. As Ackerman said, Tetris Company CEO Maya Rogers and screenwriter Noah Pink started using the ideas in his book to create the script for the Tetris film. We can read in the lawsuit that the film “liberally borrowed numerous specific sections and events from the book” and resembled the book’s tone, manner, and method.

The legal action wants $4.8 million, which is 6% of the movie’s $80 million cost. Ackerman claims that the Tetris company’s use of his work without paying him a fee constitutes an “economic attack” on his firm and that authors receive a large portion of their income from licensing their works for film and TV adaptations.

The Tetris film stars Taron Egerton as Henk Rogers and Nikita Efremov as Alexey Pajitnov, the game’s creator. It debuted on Apple TV+ in March 2023. Ackerman’s case says the film is like his work. So it deserves payment and legal action, even if the film is out and people like it. In creative changes and history tales, the case prompts us to ponder copyright and ownership limits.

As the case advances, we could discover how original works, adaptations, and ownership in the entertainment industry connect.