Hollywood Studios Intensify Legal Offensive Against AI Firms Over Copyright Infringement and Voice Likeness

In a significant escalation of Hollywood’s legal confrontation with artificial intelligence firms, Disney, Warner Bros., and NBCUniversal jointly filed a lawsuit in September against Chinese AI company MiniMax. According to Variety, the complaint alleges that MiniMax’s AI model, Hailuo, was trained on copyrighted Marvel and Star Wars characters, generating unauthorized images of iconic figures such as Darth Vader, Spider-Man, Wonder Woman, and Shrek. The studios contend that MiniMax marketed these AI-generated images as a "pocket-sized Hollywood studio."

The studios are pursuing statutory damages of up to $150,000 per infringed work. MiniMax, valued at approximately $4 billion, faces significant financial exposure as the case unfolds. This lawsuit exemplifies the broader copyright challenges posed by generative AI technologies trained on protected creative works, which threaten the intellectual property frameworks that Hollywood has developed over the past century.

The legal disputes extend beyond character image rights. Music rights holders have also initiated parallel copyright claims against AI-related infringements. Lee Mendelson Film Productions (LMFP), which owns the rights to Vince Guaraldi’s Peanuts compositions, filed four separate copyright lawsuits in May. Targets include GameMill, Heritage Auctions, the U.S. Interior Department, and Buckle-Down Inc., as reported by Billboard.

One of the LMFP suits alleges that GameMill produced knockoff music designed to evoke Guaraldi’s Peanuts compositions for a 2025 video game. LMFP attorney Marc Jacobson emphasized to Billboard that such unauthorized use undermines the artistic integrity of the original compositions. He characterized the lawsuits as a defense against companies unwilling to pay licensing fees for protected works.

In addition to copyright litigation, performers are advocating for new federal legislation to protect their voice and likeness from unauthorized AI replication. Senators Marsha Blackburn and Chris Coons reintroduced a revised version of the NO FAKES Act earlier this year. Complete Music Update reported that the bill aims to establish a nationwide right enabling performers to control AI-generated replicas of their voices and images.

Public concern about synthetic media is high, with a cited poll indicating that 92 percent of Americans worry about AI deepfakes. The NO FAKES Act seeks to address this unease by providing legal recourse against unauthorized AI-generated impersonations. Spotify, which had previously criticized the bill, acknowledged improvements in the revised draft’s safe-harbor provisions but indicated that further refinements are necessary.

Collectively, these lawsuits and legislative efforts increase the costs and risks associated with training AI models on copyrighted catalogs. This dynamic pressures AI companies toward licensing agreements and signals how studios now view unlicensed AI-generated content as a direct threat to their core revenue streams.

Individual celebrities are also proactively seeking legal protections. Taylor Swift filed three trademark applications in 2026, including voice marks for specific phrases she has spoken aloud. This move followed the appearance of an AI-generated track titled "Fate of Ophelia" on Spotify Brazil last year, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.

Swift’s approach mirrors that of actor Matthew McConaughey, who secured AI-defense trademarks through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office earlier this year. Intellectual property attorney Matthew Asbell told The Hollywood Reporter that while these voice trademarks provide some protection, they are limited because they cover only specific phrases rather than all possible AI-generated variations.

Despite the proliferation of litigation and trademark filings, the entertainment industry’s most prominent attempt at cooperative engagement with AI technology collapsed within three months. This development underscores the ongoing tensions and challenges as Hollywood navigates the complex intersection of AI innovation and intellectual property rights.