[NEWS] Disney Refuses to Pay Alan Dean Foster ..

Avani

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Lucasfilm hired Alan Dean Foster to write novelizations for many of it's movies. He was the ghost writer for Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens, Star Wars: The Approaching Storm, Alien, Aliens, etc.

Disney bought Lucasfilm. Now they claim that they bought the rights only and don’t have to honor any of the contractual obligations. Meaning they are now collecting money off the sale of his books. But they don’t have to pay Alan Dean Foster a dime because his contract was with Lucasfilm.


The Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America have made public an attempt by the global entertainment conglomerate to withhold rightfully owed royalties to Alan Dean Foster, the veteran Star Wars author responsible for penning some of the franchises’ most important novels ............
SFWA President Mary Robinette Kowal, Foster first approached the guild in 2019 with an issue regarding a payment dispute, claiming that “he had written novels and was not being paid the royalties that were specified in his contract.”
Though she notes that “as part of our negotiating toolbox, we guarantee anonymity for both the writer and the publisher if the grievance is resolved,” due to the extenuating circumstances of this particular case, Kowal revealed that the party causing issues for Foster was none other than the House of Mouse.....
....
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“When you purchased Lucasfilm you acquired the rights to some books I wrote,” explained Foster in a statement addressed to Disney. “STAR WARS, the novelization of the very first film. SPLINTER OF THE MIND’S EYE, the first sequel novel. You owe me royalties on these books. You stopped paying them.”


Foster’s Star Wars novels are not the only books for which Disney is withholding royalties, as the author notes that “when you purchased 20th Century Fox, you eventually acquired the rights to other books I had written,” which included “the novelizations of ALIEN, ALIENS, and ALIEN 3”, a trio of novels for which Foster claims Disney “never paid royalties on any of these, or even issued royalty statements for them.”


All these books are all still very much in print,” Foster pointed out. “They still earn money. For you. When one company buys another, they acquire its liabilities as well as its assets. You’re certainly reaping the benefits of the assets. I’d very much like my miniscule (though it’s not small to me) share.”

The author also claims that the company wanted him to “sign an NDA (Non-disclosure agreement) before even talking”, with Foster claiming that “never once did anyone ever ask me to sign one prior to negotiations” and asserting that it was done “for the obvious reason that once you sign, you can no longer talk about the matter at hand.”

“Every one of my representatives in this matter, with many, many decades of experience in such business, echo my bewilderment,” he added.....


Thoughts?
 
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salamander uchiha

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I don'tthink that will work out, if a contract exists with Lucas films then the liability also exists. If Disney brought the rights and the company, they too incur the liabilities. It's how Bayer is on the hook for Monsanto lawsuits. He should win a court case if it comes to it.
 

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I don'tthink that will work out, if a contract exists with Lucas films then the liability also exists. If Disney brought the rights and the company, they too incur the liabilities. It's how Bayer is on the hook for Monsanto lawsuits. He should win a court case if it comes to it.
Yea but that means being resourceful enough to fight the case against Disney.
Alan Dean foster is 74 year old and a cancer patient. I saw another writer saying he and his family needs money now and court cases take time. Disney has a team of lawyers. They can simply drag it in the court. If one court decides appeal in higher one and so on, till the cost of lawyer becomes unbareable for an individual writer or exceeds the money due.
 

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Yea but that means being resourceful enough to fight the case against Disney.
Alan Dean foster is 74 year old and a cancer patient. I saw another writer saying he and his family needs money now and court cases take time. Disney has a team of lawyers. They can simply drag it in the court. If one court decides appeal in higher one and so on, till the cost of lawyer becomes unbareable for an individual writer or exceeds the money due.
That's not good, I suppose tarnishing Disney's reputation may be the way forward. They may payout to avoid the negative press, and be seen as villains.
 
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That's not good, I suppose tarnishing Disney's reputation may be the way forward. They may payout to avoid the negative press, and be seen as villains.
Yeah.. since this is what writer says according to that article:

“When you purchased Lucasfilm you acquired the rights to some books I wrote,” explained Foster in a statement addressed to Disney. “STAR WARS, the novelization of the very first film. SPLINTER OF THE MIND’S EYE, the first sequel novel. You owe me royalties on these books. You stopped paying them.”

Foster’s Star Wars novels are not the only books for which Disney is withholding royalties, as the author notes that “when you purchased 20th Century Fox, you eventually acquired the rights to other books I had written,” which included “the novelizations of ALIEN, ALIENS, and ALIEN 3”, a trio of novels for which Foster claims Disney “never paid royalties on any of these, or even issued royalty statements for them.”


All these books are all still very much in print,” Foster pointed out. “They still earn money. For you. When one company buys another, they acquire its liabilities as well as its assets. You’re certainly reaping the benefits of the assets. I’d very much like my miniscule (though it’s not small to me) share.”

The author also claims that the company wanted him to “sign an NDA (Non-disclosure agreement) before even talking”, with Foster claiming that “never once did anyone ever ask me to sign one prior to negotiations” and asserting that it was done “for the obvious reason that once you sign, you can no longer talk about the matter at hand.”

“Every one of my representatives in this matter, with many, many decades of experience in such business, echo my bewilderment,” he added.

That's a lot... and they can do it to others too...
 
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well yo i think its important to differentiate between what an author is and what a ghost writer is. this OP is misleading when you read the actual article. because if he was a ghost writer, then hes literally forfeiting his copyright claim. like for instance ive ghost written songs for other mainstream artists, did backing vocals on songs, created sections or added instrumental parts in a song they were working on. and it was either for free because we're friends, we were dating or they paid me upfront. but as a ghost if the song made a project, i didnt get credited on the album, which made me not apart of the copyright claim and not eligible for royalties. so anything he ghost writes for LucasFilms of FOX hes not getting paid for

but the actual article is saying that hes not getting paid for books hes credited as author of that are still being published. which then despite public opinion it actually matters what the contract says, this industry is vicious and the contracts are really specific. like ive literally seen record deal contracts where it said the label had complete rights to your music in this reality and any other existing realities, no lie lol. so it actually depends on the contract. but when the companies were sold to Disney they shouldve made new contracts to begin with. it would be different if they just acquired the licensing rights for Star Wars etc. but if they own the copyright then LucasFilms should definitely be paying him, he should be presenting his grievance to the hire ups within the company his contract is actually the obligation of, Disney owns a lot of stuff. their obligation is to fund the studios. like for instance Sony Music isnt sending my royalty checks, its my label. im sure all of his prior royalty checks have been from LucasFilms, it wouldnt change to Disney because they bought LucasFilms

so i actually agree with, “ that they have purchased the rights but not the obligations of the contract.” the obligation of the contract falls under LucasFilms, it seems like theyre going after Disney because its the big name. but LucasFilms needs to be paying this dude and fulfilling his contract, idk why theyre making it about Disney. Disney just owns it but the payment issue is really an LucasFilms LTD. issue, especially if theyre still publishing stuff hes credited as author of. they should be getting sales numbers and paying people accordingly and reporting that too Disney
 

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then hes literally forfeiting his copyright claim
No he didn't. I was quoting but he has a contract. Disney didn't deny existence of contract or liability. It just says that it bought rights only not the contractual liabilities of it's subsidiary and that it's a dangerous precedent by itself. Company A can buy it's subsidiary and then refuse to honour the contracts the subsidiary has yet to pay.

Writer like him get paid on the sale of the book like $1.65 per book another writer quoted where I got that from.
 
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No he didn't. I was quoting but he has a contract. Disney didn't deny existence of contract or liability. It just says that it bought rights only not the contractual liabilities of it's subsidiary and that it's a dangerous precedent by itself. Company A can buy it's subsidiary and then refuse to honour the contracts the subsidiary has yet to pay.

Writer like him get paid on the sale of the book like $1.65 per book another writer quoted where I got that from.
lol geez, so intense. you also quoted out one little piece and responded out of context of what i was saying. you got beef with me now? you wanna fight huh? 😁😝

but yo, im just looking at it with my perspective and with the information at hand you provided. like i said, it depends on his contract and it also depends on the contract Disney had with LucasFilms when they bought it from George Lucas. Disney is one of the oldest companies in the entertainment industry, they know what theyre doing and are in right too do. the problem i see is theyre making this about Disney because its easy to believe "big company in entertainment industry is evil" for the public, when all thats public about the contract from the deal is that Disney bought it for such and such amount. but in reality the issue is with LucasFilms LTD. it sounds like as apart of the deal and makes the most the most sense to me, that Disney was like, let us handle this part, while you keep handling the regular business of the LLC. the LLC isnt doing that and theyre going after Disney instead

it makes more sense to me to blast LucasFilms, its just Disney brings in the press. but it doesnt seem like this guy was paying attention before the residuals stopped coming in and stayed in touch with people that hes signed with. doesnt seem like they understand the deal Disney made with LucasFilms LTD. when they bought it either. but this is all outside speculation
 

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so intense. you also quoted out one little piece and responded out of context of what i was saying. you got beef with me now? you wanna fight huh?
To be honest I didn't read the whole post. That line caught my eye. This post is totally from Writer's perspective and issue was brought up by SFWA. It is an organization for published authors and industry professionals in the fields of science fiction, fantasy, and related genres. Here:

In my decade with the organization, the fact that we are forced to present this publicly is unprecedented. So too, are the problems. The simple problem is that we have a writer who is not being paid.

The larger problem has the potential to affect every writer. Disney’s argument is that they have purchased the rights but not the obligations of the contract. In other words, they believe they have the right to publish work, but are not obligated to pay the writer no matter what the contract says. If we let this stand, it could set precedent to fundamentally alter the way copyright and contracts operate in the United States. All a publisher would have to do to break a contract would be to sell it to a sibling company.

If they are doing this to Alan Dean Foster, one of the great science fiction writers of our time, then what are they doing to the younger writers who do not know that a contract is a contract?


So of course disney would have his own narrative, but if this many people are worried that the policy should be clear that it will not be a precedent for a publisher wanting to break a contract, selling it to a sibling company. I usually ignore such conflicts but it's something where I feel there has to be some transparency and clarity on how it works.
 

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To be honest I didn't read the whole post. That line caught my eye. This post is totally from Writer's perspective and brought up by SFWA. It is an organization for published authors and industry professionals in the fields of science fiction, fantasy, and related genres. Here:



So of course disney would have his own story but if this many people are worried the policy should be clear that it will not be a precedent for a publisher wanting to break a contract, selling it to a sibling company. There need to be some transperency and clarity on how it works.
oh so i grace you with my perspective you asked for but didnt read. then expect me click on links and outside quotes? 😂😂😂 youre funny

it seems like Disney tried to do that. legally youre not suppose to share contract information like that publicly here. thats why they always have people NDA's, theres nothing special or shady about that because it can be a breach of contract. they dont have to actually do anything i think yet and LucasFilms LTD. should be informing and handling this with their artist. im not saying Disney is not at fault but people seem to be ignoring LucasFilms part in this, with an author who made a contract with that specific company. its like hes just going above them for attention which is shady imo
 

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oh so i grace you with my perspective you asked for but didnt read. then expect me click on links and outside quotes? 😂😂😂 youre funny
Contract thing caught my eye and you casually assuming that he gave his write away didn't set well with me.

But you are right. I should have read the whole post. I will address it later as I am in a hurry right now.
 
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Contract thing caught my eye and you casually assuming that he gave his write away didn't set well with me.

But you are right. I should have read the whole post. I will address it later as I am in a hurry right now.
im just surprised miss, “i like to read so much i read phone books” missed what i was talking about. but your reasoning is valid, plus i might need another lawyer in the future. so take your time 😝😁
 

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I dont get why they are being cheap and this is only bad publicity for them but I guess it's not going to stop people from watching Disney products.

Even if the guy does die his family will still have the ability to sue them.

Hopefully disney does the right thing and pay the man.

His best shot is to try to make a big fuss in media.
 

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I dont get why they are being cheap and this is only bad publicity for them but I guess it's not going to stop people from watching Disney products.

Even if the guy does die his family will still have the ability to sue them.

Hopefully disney does the right thing and pay the man.

His best shot is to try to make a big fuss in media.
@bold: Yeah the writer's association went public saying that only. Because they are worried not only about him, but rest of them in general. They fear that such tactics may hit them all in future, if a precedent is set.

His family can sue but then it will also be a matter of who can bare the legal cost for how long.

im just surprised miss, “i like to read so much i read phone books” missed what i was talking about. but your reasoning is valid, plus i might need another lawyer in the future. so take your time 😝😁
Hey that was years ago- Youtube and Google search engine were not even launched yet. I am not sure they issue directories anymore. They probably do but I haven't tried to fine a new one in last decade.

Your case as a ghost writer was different. Alan's name is on the novels- on cover pages as well. He was a ghost writer for certain star wars episode named up there. Payment he is asking are for the books as he was to get it according to sales.

The conflict arose when they bought all the rights for the stuff he wrote and are selling his work, but refused to pay him. Subsidiary is not selling it anymore and the ones who bought it refuses to acknowledge the contract. When companies formally hire someone to write whether they intend to give him credit publicly or not, they have to pay. They cannot pass of rights to a subsidiary or a sister company or parent company and then not pay. Rest if how good a lawyer you can get.
 
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Hey that was years ago- Youtube and Google search engine were not even launched yet. I am not sure they issue directories anymore. They probably do but I haven't tried to fine a new one in last decade.

Your case as a ghost writer was different. Alan's name is on the novels- on cover pages as well. He was a ghost writer for certain star wars episode named up there. Payment he is asking are for the books as he was to get it according to sales.

The conflict arose when they bought all the rights for the stuff he wrote and are selling his work, but refused to pay him. Subsidiary is not selling it anymore and the ones who bought it refuses to acknowledge the contract. When companies formally hire someone to write whether they intend to give him credit publicly or not, they have to pay. They cannot pass of rights to a subsidiary or a sister company or parent company and then not pay. Rest if how good a lawyer you can get.
oh okay yo so @bold is the missing info i didnt read in the article. i was coming from the perspective initially that LucasFilms was still selling and publishing the books. while Disney was funding them and paying for the process and profiting through LucasFilms. but like i said originally ive seen some crazy entertainment contracts (mainly in music and film) which im sure you have also. legally, depending on what Disney and LucasFilms came to agreement when they sold them majority shares. is there a possibility, that it actually is the case and part of the deal was LucasFilms handling their contracts under their company since Walt Disney have so many subsidiaries?

otherwise what it is the point of having LucasFilms as a subsidiary instead of an imprint if none of the stuff that they had apart of their company originally is going through them anymore but the parent company?
 
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oh okay yo so @bold is the missing info i didnt read in the article. i was coming from the perspective initially that LucasFilms was still selling and publishing the books. while Disney was funding them and paying for the process and profiting through LucasFilms. but like i said originally ive seen some crazy entertainment contracts (mainly in music and film) which im sure you have also. legally, depending on what Disney and LucasFilms came to agreement when they sold them majority shares. is there a possibility, that it actually is the case and part of the deal was LucasFilms handling their contracts under their company since Walt Disney have so many subsidiaries?

otherwise what it is the point of having LucasFilms as a subsidiary instead of an imprint if none of the stuff that they had apart of their company originally is going through them anymore but the parent company?
I do not know about publishing but the article's wording suggested Disney was selling it and the seller was to pay- that's what seem to be the case to me. Anyway whatever the case I hope the issue is sorted more amicably and some clarity about contracts come out in public too. If nothing else it would be a lesson for other writers to know what to watch out for.
 
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I know people who have lost their business because Disney refused to pay them for services rendered. Because it was apparently cheaper to tie it up in the courts for the next 50 years than to pay what they owed.

Disney stopped paying Foster, they have likely stopped paying other authors too. With their clout and resources, they'll be able to stop payment whenever they want, regardless of what the laws are. I mean, this is the company that really screwed us over by fighting to extend copyright laws so that characters they own wouldn't enter the public domain.
 
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