M. Night Shyamalan Wins Servant Trial, Cleared of Plagiarism Allegation

A federal jury has ruled in favor of director M. Night Shyamalan in a copyright trial that accused the filmmaker of stealing ideas for his Apple TV+ show Servant.

What was the M. Night Shyamalan trial about?

A recent ruling has ended the trial after just seven days, with the jury ruling unanimously in favor of Shyamalan. Beginning on January 14, the suit from director Francesca Gregorini alleged that Shyamalan and others had stolen narrative elements from her 2013 film, The Truth About Emanuel, without crediting her or acknowledging her in any way.

The 2013 film followed the story of a mother who treats a baby doll like her own real child, and the filmmaker claimed that several elements, including shots and scenes, had been taken from her movie. She was seeking upwards of $81 million in damages and said that she was advised not to sue Shyamalan, but did so to stand up for herself.

“I wanted to hold the defendants accountable for what they did and to do my part so that this doesn’t happen to anyone else in my industry ever again,” she said in her testimony (via Variety).

Shyamalan testified in court on Wednesday and said that he had not actually seen the movie and neither had anyone who worked on Servant. He also testified that the whole situation was simply a “misunderstanding,” and that he wouldn’t have stood for anyone stealing credit for the show had it happened.

“This accusation is the exact opposite of everything I do and everything I try to represent,” he told the court. “I would have never allowed it. None of the people that I work with would ever do anything like that.”

The trial was the final stage of what was a five-year legal battle between Gregorini and Shyamalan. The original lawsuit was filed in 2020 and has outlasted the entirety of Servant, which ended following its fourth season.

Source: Comingsoon.net