Warner Bros. Releases Statement on "The Hangover" II Lawsuit

Some of you who follow movie news and gossip closely have probably heard about The Hangover II lawsuit. Victor Whitmill, the man responsible for giving boxing champion Mike Tyson his tribal-inspired facial tattoo, brought a lawsuit against the producers of The Hangover Part II. Whitmill was suing because Ed Helms character in the film, Dr. Stuart “Stu” Price, gets a tattoo identical to the one Whitmill designed for Tyson, who appeared in the original film and also appears in the sequel.

Whitmill claimed he had a copyright for the design and wanted the tattoo’s image removed from the film and its movie posters, which would have effectively halted the film’s release. Whitmill is also seeking $30 million.

Judge Catherine D. Perry dismissed the case on Tuesday, May 24th, allowing the film to be released today, Thursday, May 26, 2011. She ruled that it was “in the public interest” to let Warner Bros. release the film as scheduled.

Whitmill is apparently not dropping his case against the studio. While the judge denied the motion to halt The Hangover II’s release, she did find a “strong likelihood of prevailing on the merits for copyright infringement.”

Here is a press release from Warner Bros. Pictures regarding the decision rendered Tuesday afternoon:

Warner Bros. Statement

BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In response to today’s court decision, Warner Bros. released the following statement:

“We are very gratified by the Court's decision which will allow the highly anticipated film ‘The Hangover Part II’ to be released on schedule this week around the world. Plaintiff's failed attempt to enjoin the film in order to try and extract a massive settlement payment from Warner Bros. was highly inappropriate and unwarranted.”