Post by CarolinaCutie on May 16, 2003 13:28:59 GMT -4
J.Lo Sued for Stealing
Loose lips launch lawsuits.
Jennifer Lopez is being sued for $3 million by a director who claims she stole his idea for a big-screen adaptation of the opera Carmen.
Adam Shankman, who made his directing debut on Lopez's 2001 hit The Wedding Planner, claims he told the multihyphenate (actress, pop star, producer, fashion designer, restaurant owner, perfume purveyor, etc.) about his idea to cast her in the romantic tragedy.
Lopez allegedly took a shine to the idea and passed it off as her own in a pitch meeting with Universal Pictures, cutting Shankman out of the deal, according to court documents filed in Los Angeles Superior Court May 2. The amount of damages was unspecified, but we're sure Shankman's figure will have plenty of zeros.
A rep for the Latina diva dismissed the allegations, saying, "We have not seen the complaint, but I'm surprised that anyone would have the audacity to claim intellectual domain over a property as well known as Carmen."
The 1875 opera, remade by everyone from Cecil B. DeMille (news) to MTV (who cast Beyoncé Knowles as the lead in its hip-hopera), is itself based on a French novel by Prosper Merimee.
Also named in the suit are Lopez's manager Benny Medina and Absolute Entertainment.
News of the Carmen suit came just as the Bronx-born babe announced a long-term production deal with Spanish-language TV network Telemundo. Lopez's first project is an opera of sorts--she'll produce a tele-novella (a soap opera) about a young girl from the block who dreams of becoming a star (Glitter, anyone?).
Maybe she can't help it (if this turns out to be true). ::SHM::
Loose lips launch lawsuits.
Jennifer Lopez is being sued for $3 million by a director who claims she stole his idea for a big-screen adaptation of the opera Carmen.
Adam Shankman, who made his directing debut on Lopez's 2001 hit The Wedding Planner, claims he told the multihyphenate (actress, pop star, producer, fashion designer, restaurant owner, perfume purveyor, etc.) about his idea to cast her in the romantic tragedy.
Lopez allegedly took a shine to the idea and passed it off as her own in a pitch meeting with Universal Pictures, cutting Shankman out of the deal, according to court documents filed in Los Angeles Superior Court May 2. The amount of damages was unspecified, but we're sure Shankman's figure will have plenty of zeros.
A rep for the Latina diva dismissed the allegations, saying, "We have not seen the complaint, but I'm surprised that anyone would have the audacity to claim intellectual domain over a property as well known as Carmen."
The 1875 opera, remade by everyone from Cecil B. DeMille (news) to MTV (who cast Beyoncé Knowles as the lead in its hip-hopera), is itself based on a French novel by Prosper Merimee.
Also named in the suit are Lopez's manager Benny Medina and Absolute Entertainment.
News of the Carmen suit came just as the Bronx-born babe announced a long-term production deal with Spanish-language TV network Telemundo. Lopez's first project is an opera of sorts--she'll produce a tele-novella (a soap opera) about a young girl from the block who dreams of becoming a star (Glitter, anyone?).
Maybe she can't help it (if this turns out to be true). ::SHM::
