Warner Bros. sues Midjourney for using its characters

Warner Bros. Discovery has filed a lawsuit against AI-powered image generation platform Midjourney in federal court in Los Angeles. According to the lawsuit, the company allowed the creation of Downloadable images and videos of Warner characters without authorization, which would constitute a massive copyright infringement.

The study claims that the AI ​​tool enables high-quality results with its best-known properties, such as Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Scooby-Doo and Bugs Bunny, among others. The civil lawsuit seeks to determine which uses of technology conflict with the intellectual property of a major Hollywood studio.

Background and scope of the accusations

According to the complaint, Midjourney reportedly trained and operated its service using works from the Warner Bros. catalog without a license., allowing subscribers to generate scenes with their characters in virtually "every imaginable situation." The study maintains that the platform exploits its intellectual property to drive a subscription-based business, similar to services like HBO Max.

Warner adds that Midjourney even restricted the creation of videos from potentially infringing images., But lifted that blockade recently and presented it to users as an "improvement" to the service. For the study, this decision would demonstrate knowledge and willingness to continue with the practice.

The file submitted includes examples that, according to Warner, were generated with the tool itself: from a Superman looking at his cell phone until a Batman posing next to the droid R2-D2The company emphasizes that it has not authorized Midjourney to use or market reproductions of its characters.

The lawsuit also mentions that images made with Midjourney circulate regularly in Reddit, Discord and Instagram, and that the platform relies on that content to promote its capabilities. San Francisco-based Midjourney operates on a model monthly subscription (approx. $10 to $120)According to the court document, the company reached almost 21 million users by September 2024 and would have entered around $ 300 billion in 2024.

The case is listed as Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. v. Midjourney Inc., #2:25-cv-08376, before the United States District Court for the Central District of California (Los Angeles). Midjourney's attorneys They did not respond immediately to requests for comments, as stated in the complaint.

What Warner Bros. is claiming from the judge

Warner requests significant financial compensation: asks statutory damages of up to $150.000 per allegedly infringed work or, failing that, the reimbursement of the profits obtained by Midjourney from said activity.

In addition, the study requires a court order that prevents the platform from continuing to generate and distribute content that replicates its franchises without permission. In the words of the document, this would be a intentional and profit-making infringement, which the company intends to demonstrate during the process.

The complaint alleges that Midjourney is not authorized to use, sell or provide reproductions of characters and scenes from Warner's catalog. The production company believes this practice erodes the commercial value of its works and its licensing agreements with third parties.

For now, the action is directed against the platform and not against individual users. However, Warner warns that if the court grants the requested measures, they could be imposed. new filters and safeguards to limit requests such as "Batman in such a situation" or "Superman in such a scenario" within the service.

The legal context and similar cases

Warner Bros.' offensive coincides with demands of Disney and Universal against Midjourney for the use of characters from their catalogs, presented months before. This common front of major studios reflects the sector's concern regarding the Generative AI and its interaction with protected works.

The core of the legal debate is whether or not the training of models and the generation of results are covered by the fair use of US copyright law. While studios maintain that this is an unauthorized exploitation, AI companies argue otherwise; the issue, for now, remains in dispute and requires judicial pronouncements that establish criteria.

If Warner's claims prosper, the sector could be forced to strengthen filters for protected characters and other proactive measures. For creators and audiences alike, the outcome will determine the outcome. real impact of AI in the reuse of known franchises and in the circulation of algorithm-generated fan art.

With a process that is just getting started in Los Angeles, the litigation may set the limits of how far AI-assisted creativity goes when there is recognizable franchises, such as those used in games like multiversus, in between. For now, Warner's message is clear: look for compensation, brake on new reproductions and guarantees that their characters are not used without permission on content generation platforms.