Original Road House Screenwriter Files Lawsuit Against Amazon

The screenwriter of the original 1989 Road House film is suing Metro Goldwyn Mayer Studios and parent company Amazon Studios for copyright infringement. According to Variety, R. Lance Hill — who uses the pen name David Lee Henry — is claiming in his lawsuit that Amazon ignored his ability to reclaim rights to his original screenplay and went forward with their Road House remake starring Jake Gyllenhaal which will debut March 21st on Prime Video.

According to the specifics of the lawsuit, Hill claims that in 2021 he filed a petition with the. U.S. Copyright Office requesting that the copyright to Road House return to him once United Artists' claim expired in November 2023. The lawsuit also alleges that Amazon ignored the claims, going forward with the film and even using artificial intelligence to replicate the voices of the film's actors in order to complete ADR during the SAG-AFTRA strike so that they could finish film prior to the November 10th deadline. Hill claims that work on Road House wasn't actually completed until January 2024 — months after the copyright deadline.

"On Nov. 11, 2023, the Screenplay's copyright thereby duly reverted to Hill under the Copyright Act. Yet, in contravention of the Act's fundamental authorial termination right, Defendants refused to acknowledge Hill's statutory termination," the suit reads. "Instead, Defendants steamrolled ahead with the production of a remake of the 1989 Film derived from Hill's Screenplay."

Interestingly, this isn't the first time there have been AI-related allegations when it comes to the Road House remake. According to Variety's report, sources alleged that producer Joel Silver, who was fired from Amazon in November over verbal abuse, was instead actually being fired over concerns regarding Amazon's use of AI to complete Road House.

Amazon denies the use of AI in making Road House and called Hill's lawsuit "without merit" in a statement.

"The lawsuit filed by R. Lance Hill regarding 'Road House' today is completely without merit and numerous allegations are categorically false. The film does not use any AI in place of actors' voices. We look forward to defending ourselves against these claims," the statement reads.

What is the Road House Reboot About?

The description for Prime Video's Road House reads, "In this adrenaline-fueled reimagining of the 80s cult classic, ex-UFC fighter Dalton (Jake Gyllenhaal) takes a job as a bouncer at a Florida Keys roadhouse, only to discover that this paradise is not all it seems."

Anthony Bagarozzi (The Nice Guys) and Charles Mondry (Doc Savage) wrote the script for the new Road House. Joel Silver, whose credits include the original Road House as well as Lethal Weapon and Predator, is producing via his Silver Pictures. JJ Hook (6 Underground, The Lost City), Alison Winter (The Wall, Chaos Walking), and Aaron Auch (Orphan, The Losers) are also executive producers.  The film stars Gyllenhaal, Conor McGregor, Billy Magnussen (No Time To Die), Daniela Melchior (The Suicide Squad), Gbemisola Ikumelo (A League of Their Own), Lukas Gage (Euphoria), Hannah Love Lanier (The Tiny Mighty Club), Travis Van Winkle (You), B.K. Cannon (Why Women Kill), Arturo Castro (Broad City), Dominique Columbus (Ray Donovan), Beau Knapp (The Lost Symbol), Bob Menery (Full Send Podcast), Joaquim de Almeida (Fast X), Darren Barnet (Agents of SHIELD), Kevin Carroll (Showtime's Let the Right One In), and JD Pardo (Mayans M.C.). 

Road House (2024) is scheduled to be released on March 21st.