You can't rewrite history. Unless of course, you are making movies.
Warner Brothers won a huge victory in a Florida lawsuit regarding the 2000 oceanic disaster film A Perfect Storm. They were sued by the heirs of Captain Billy Tyne and Dale Murphy Sr, played respectively by George Clooney and John C. Reilly, for unfairly depicting the characters and tainting the accuracy of their relationships on the "Andrea Gail" ship. The Florida Supreme Court ruled in favor of the movie company, saying that they provided a disclaimer that elements of the film would be fictionalized for entertainment purposes.
Gregg Thomas, lead attorney for Warners Bros in the case, stated that a victory for the heirs, "would have meant that in order to do a film about any historical event, you would have had to receive the permission of the individual or their heirs before you did the film. The fear of the expansion of this statute was substantial."
This is actually great news for moviegoers, because it means we can continue to see movies without legal pre-approval. There is no such thing as a 100% true story, since everyone involved could easily have a different view on what occurred, and then run to court in a frenzy to oppose contrasting perspectives.
Call me crazy, but I prefer my art without a side of censorship.
Source: Hollywood Reporter
