10 TV Scenes That Led To Massive Lawsuits

When single scenes of TV cause a big 'ol legal mess.

The Queens Gambit
Netflix

There's such a massive volume of TV content being produced every single day that it's little surprise that some of it rubs people the wrong way.

Or further still, certain scenes may prove offensive enough to those affected that they decide to file a lawsuit.

From public figures who feel that they were misrepresented in a TV series to musicians and artists whose work was allegedly illegally appropriated, the reasons are myriad for why a scene in a TV show could trigger legal action.

In some cases the litigious party ended up requesting massive monetary compensation for the apparently immense damage caused, while in others they desired nothing more than to receive full credit for their contribution.

Whatever the reason, these scenes from 10 hit TV shows all ended up causing massive headaches for the studios and showrunners involved. If this list ends up proving anything, it's surely that Netflix's legal team is absolutely earning its keep.

And so, from laughably frivolous lawsuits to legal action that entered these episodes into the annals of pop-culture infamy, each had far more of an impact beyond mere entertainment value...

10. Misappropriating A Goat-Headed Statue - Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina

The Queens Gambit
Netflix

Netflix's hugely successful reboot of Sabrina the Teenage Witch came under fire back in 2018 for featuring a goat-headed deity statue in four of the first season's ten episodes.

Mere days after the season debuted, religious group The Satanic Temple filed a copyright lawsuit against Netflix and Warner Bros Entertainment, claiming that the show's statue copied the design of their own bronze sculpture of Baphomet, a winged, goat-headed occult figure, without permission.

The Satanic Temple sought at least $50 million in damages from the streamer, and despite the tendency for legal proceedings to drag on forever, the case was quickly settled out of court less than a month after the offending episodes first aired.

The Satanic Temple was awarded an undisclosed sum - likely far less than $50 million, because the first rule of litigation is to always ask for more than you really want - and the credits for each of the four episodes were edited to give the organisation credit for the design.

That was strangely hassle-free, then, though the same sadly can't be said for most of the other entries on this list.

Contributor
Contributor

Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes). General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.