New evidence has surfaced in recent weeks that seems to strengthen author Barbara Chase-Riboud's claim that DreamWorks cribbed part of Steven Spielberg's slave-ship mutiny movie from her 1989 historical novel Echo of Lions. She has filed a $10 million copyright-infringement suit against the fledgling studio and is also seeking to halt distribution of the film.
This evidence--testimony screenwriter David Franzoni gave before the Writers Guild of America West to establish his authorship--reveals that Franzoni admitted reading Echo of Lions before pitching the idea to Spielberg.
This contradicts court papers filed last week by DreamWorks contending Amistad was purely based on William A. Owens' 1953 book Black Mutiny, the rights of which are owned by the studio. (DreamWorks further alleges that Chase-Riboud plagiarized Black Mutiny.) It also counters Franzoni's on-the-record claim that he never read Echo of Lions.
However, a letter sent by a WGA West special committee November 7, states, "Mr. Franzoni stated that at the time of the pitch, he had already read two books on the subject, Echos [sic] of Lions and Black Odyssey, and had previously attempted to develop the project at Warner Bros."
The note also concludes that Black Mutiny wasn't the only source material used in writing Amistad--as DreamWorks had claimed. In fact, the letters says that Franzoni rejected DreamWorks' claim that Black Mutiny was his only source material. (He wouldn't have gotten the coveted original writer's credit if he based the entire work after only one book. That would be an adaptation.)
"This is the proverbial smoking gun," Chase-Riboud's attorney, Pierce O'Donnell, says, "It leaves their defense in shambles."
"With this evidence, [Chase-Riboud] will be able to further impeach Mr. Franzoni about his denial under oath that he read Echo of Lions... [It will also] show the jury that , contrary to DreamWorks' claim, even the screenwriter admits he did not read or rely upon Black Mutiny."
O'Donnell also discounts a second letter, dated November 26, stating the committee had erred in saying Franzoni read Echo. "Mr. Franzoni never said at the hearing that he had read Echos (sic) of Lions," it reads.
O'Donnell questions why Franzoni, or his lawyer, or "someone," waited 19 days before realizing the "mistake" regarding source material and demanded the correction from the WGA. O'Donnell believes that in the period between the two WGA letters, Franzoni realized he was implicated in the suit and asked for the correction letter to protect himself and DreamWorks.
Franzoni's lawyer, Linda Lichter, did not return phone calls Friday. The WGA didn't deny the authenticity of the letters, but would not comment on the matter.
This new evidence will be presented in court Monday, December 8. That's when a judge has scheduled a hearing to decide whether to block Amistad's December 10 debut.
O'Donnell admits actually winning an injunction against a $75 million film is a longshot. "It's probably more possible for me to climb Mount Everest," he adds. "But whether or not we get the injunction, we're still going ahead with the [damages suit]."