Fortnite Sued Over Dance Moves Again — What Makes This Case Different From the Others?

Fortnite is being sued over dance moves once again. This time, Epic Games is being sued by a professional choreographer who has worked with the likes of Britney Spears, Jennifer Lopez, BLACKPINK, and more.

While this may not be the first time the game was sued over dance moves, what may spell the difference in this particular lawsuit is that the choreographer holds the copyright to the dance in question.

Fortnite Sued Over Dance Moves Again

Fortnite is facing yet another lawsuit over dance moves.

According to a report by GameSpot, Epic Games is being sued by a professional choreographer named Kyle Hanagami, who has worked with famous artists in the past.

The lawsuit is over the It's Complicated dance emote seen in Fortnite. It is available as of press time on the Fortnite Item Shop.

"The choreography comes from a video Hanagami posted in 2017, featuring a challenging dance routine set to Charlie Puth's How Long," GameSpot reports. The It's Complicate emote was released by Fortnite three years later.

The GameSpot report notes that the "first section of the dance appearing almost identical to Hanagami's choreography." The choreographer's lawyers have even released a video comparing Hanagami's choreography with the Fortnite dance emote, which you can watch below:

Does Kyle Hanagami Have Any Copyright Claim?

As it has been previously noted, this lawsuit is just the latest in the list of lawsuits against the game over dance moves. However, GameSpot notes that there is a possibility that this particular lawsuit may turn out differently compared to the other lawsuits, which have been already dropped.

This is because Hanagami actually owns the copyright to the choreography he made. According to GameSpot, his lawyers have said that Epic Games did not ask the choreographer for his consent to use the dance moves. Hanagami has not been credited by Epic Games for it either.

The lawsuit is asking Epic Games to take down the It's Complicated dance emote and to pay Hanagami the profits that the developer has earned from the emote.

Other Lawsuits Against Fortnite Over Dance Moves

Another notable lawsuit against Fortnite over dance moves is the one filed by Alfonso Ribeiro. Ribeiro is best known for his role in "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air."

According to a report by Vulture, Ribeiro sued Epic Games for using his dance, the Carlton, without getting his permission. However, he had to drop the lawsuit because he did not own the copyright to the Cartlon.

Vulture reported at that time that "the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that if the U.S. Copyright Office has not granted or refused a person's application for registration, that person is not legally able to sue for copyright infringement."

Per GameSpot, his application was eventually declined as the Carlton was considered too simply.