Pic from The Official Mutant X Site
Cinescape: 8/10/01
Will MUTANT X Still Be MUTANT X?
Fox continues legal actions to alter coming syndicated TV series.
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Dateline: Friday, August 10, 2001
By: FRANK KURTZ
By: News Editor
Source: Variety
Given the commercials and promotional events lined up for the coming MUTANT X TV series, you'd think that the lawsuit regarding the property filed by 20th Century Fox against Tribune Entertainment had been settled. It hasn't.
On Thursday, New York District Court Judge Allen Schwartz turned down Fox's injunction that was filed to halt production of the MUTANT X TV series.
Meanwhile, the judge also declared that the use of MUTANT X as a title was in violation of Fox's rights to the X-MEN. Still, the judge did not, as yet, order a name change for the series.
Tribune Entertainment prexy-CEO Dick Askin spoke on this turn of events, declaring that the U.S. District Court "overwhelmingly ruled in our favor … (and dismissed) all of the significant claims against Tribune... We have always believed that there are no actionable similarities whatsoever between MUTANT X and the motion picture X-MEN."
However, in a statement issued by Fox on the matter, the studio says, "In this lawsuit, Fox forced the creators of MUTANT X to change the content of their series, and the court has now ordered further changes to the logo, used to sell the MUTANT X television series, which the court held infringes Fox's rights and can no longer be used. The court rejected Marvel's argument that television series rights were not 'frozen' by the parties' agreement.
"Finally, the court allowed Fox to proceed to a full trial. Fox looks forward to this opportunity to further vindicate its rights."
More pointedly, while talking to Variety, Ted Russell, Fox's VP of litigation stated, "If Tribune and Marvel decide to use the title MUTANT X, they do so at their own peril."
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