Taylor Swift's Disney Documentary Release Could Be B...

By Jenna Sundel

News Reporter

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The release of a Disney+ docuseries about Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour could be blocked by Judge Aileen Cannon after the plaintiff in a copyright infringement case against the singer filed a motion for a preliminary injunction.

A source close to Swift’s legal team told Newsweek, “Marasco’s claims are absurd and legally baseless. For instance, the concepts of fire or love cannot be owned by one person, as basic themes or words are not protectable by copyright law. The court has already dismissed these claims with prejudice once, and we are confident they will do so again.”

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Kimberly Marasco, a Florida artist, is asking the court to halt the release of episodes of The End of an Era containing alleged copyright infringement. The series is scheduled to be released for streaming on Disney+ on December 12.

Newsweek reached out to Marasco and Disney for comment.

Why It Matters

Marasco is suing Swift, Universal Music Group and Republic Records. She alleged that Swift and her co-defendants copied her poetry in lyrics and visuals from multiple albums, including Lover, Folklore, Midnights and The Tortured Poets Department.

This is Marasco’s second lawsuit against Swift. Swift was dismissed from the first case after Marasco failed to serve the lawsuit within the time frame provided by the court. The case against Swift’s production company, Taylor Swift Productions, was dismissed with prejudice in September.

Cannon, who rose to national prominence when she was the judge assigned to President Donald Trump's classified documents case, has presided over both lawsuits against Swift.

What To Know

The End of an Era is a six-part docuseries “chronicling the development, impact, and inner-workings" of Swift’s Eras Tour, according to Disney.

Marasco said in the motion that the release of the docuseries will cause her to suffer “irreparable harm.”

“Once the docuseries is broadcast globally, Plaintiff’s works will be irreversibly embedded in cultural products beyond Plaintiff's reach, without any credit or acknowledgment of Plaintiff’s material,” Marasco wrote.

Neama Rahmani, former federal prosecutor and the president of West Coast Trial Lawyers, said the court is “not supposed to order parties to do things or not do things if money damages would be an appropriate remedy.”

“To block a worldwide tour, to block a release on Disney+ and those types of things doesn’t seem appropriate where if Taylor Swift really was infringing, she can just pay money for her infringement," Rahmani told Newsweek.

He said he would be “shocked” if the motion is granted.

“I don’t think she demonstrated a likelihood of success from the merits,” Rahmani said.

What People Are Saying

Kimberly Marasco, in a motion for preliminary injunction: “Absent injunctive relief, Plaintiff will suffer irreparable harm that monetary damages cannot remedy. The balance of equities and public interest strongly favor protecting Plaintiff’s rights. Plaintiff therefore respectfully requests that this Court grant the motion for preliminary injunction.”

Neama Rahmani, former federal prosecutor and the president of West Coast Trial Lawyers, in comments about Marasco’s claims of copyright infringement to Newsweek: “It has to be substantially similar or really identical. If you’re just talking about just general ideas, that’s not something that you can copyright. I just don’t see the similarity.”