Warner Bros. Plans to Alter ‘Hangover’ Tattoo for Video Release
Warner Bros. intends to digitally alter the tattoo sported by actor Ed Helms in The Hangover Part II for the movie’s DVD and Blu-ray release, according to court documents. Tattoo artist S. Victor Whitmill – who gave Mike Tyson the Maori-style tattoo that the film references – sued Warner Bros. for copyright infringement. The company countered Whitmill’s request for an expedited trial with this statement from their lawyers:
“If the parties are unable to resolve their dispute, Warner Bros. does not intend to make any use of the allegedly infringing tattoo after the film ends its run in the theaters because Warner Bros. will digitally alter the film to substitute a different tattoo on Ed Helms’s face. As a result, there is no reason for the highly accelerated trial Plaintiff has asked this Court to hold on Plaintiff’s request for a permanent injunction.”
It’s not quite like Steven Spielberg substituting walkie talkies for guns in E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial, but a bizarre alteration of a popular movie nonetheless. The Hangover Part II grossed over $86 million US in its opening weekend, and is still in theaters.
A mediation hearing for the case is set for June 16, with a court date slated for Feb. 21, 2012.
(via EW.com)
Some people are super cereal about their tattoo art. :P