UFC icon Conor McGregor’s upcoming movie Road House sued for AI voice cloning and copyright violation

Conor McGregor, the former two-division UFC champion, skyrocketed his finances after his boxing match with Floyd Mayweather. McGregor became one of the biggest superstars in sports history and even made sound business decisions.

McGregor’s fame also allowed him to bag a starring role opposite Jake Gyllenhall in the remake of the 1988 movie The Road House. Scheduled for release in the coming days via Amazon Prime, the movie faces a legal battle in court.

Conor McGregor’s debut film slapped with lawsuit

Conor McGregor’s debut film, Road House, is now facing a lawsuit from R. Lance Hill, the screenwriter of the original movie, who has alleged copyright infringement and unauthorized generative AI use. The screenwriter alleged that the production company practiced the allegations amidst the Hollywood writer’s strikes the previous year.

Hill claims copyright ownership by citing his contract with United Artists, which grants him copyright ownership of the screenplay. Amazon Studios, which produced the remake, had acquired MGM, the producers of the original movie but Hill does not feel that the MGM library has any valid claims to his screenplay.

Hill’s allegations also reveal that he informed Amazon Studios of his copyright infringement concerns. The screenwriter is at present seeking a court injunction to halt the release of the film in theaters and on OTT platforms.

Nonetheless, Amazon’s spokesperson, Jenna Klein, stated that the production company has not used any AI but has been done by filmmakers during editing. Moreover, they also disputed the allegations made by Hill as baseless.

Conor McGregor shares McGregor Vs Gyllenhaal poster

Even though his debut movie is facing a legal battle, Conor McGregor seems very unbothered as he continues to promote the film on his social media. “McGregor Vs Gylenhaal! “Roadhouse” out March 21st @mgmstudios @PrimeVideo”, McGregor tweeted with a picture of himself in an inverted standing arm-triangle choke on Jake Gyllenhall.

Gyllenhaal, the Academy Award nominee, will be portraying the protagonist of the movie, while McGregor will essay the role of Knox, the primary antagonist. Gyllenhaal had attended multiple UFC events for the promotion of the movie and the UFC even supported the shooting of the movie amidst their events.

Interestingly, Gyllenhaal’s character in the movie is that of an ex-UFC fighter who had anger management issues. McGregor, too, has promoted the movie on his social media channels with behind-the-scenes footage and images of the highly anticipated movie. The trailer of the movie already got rave reviews.

Dana White, the UFC CEO, confirmed in a recent interview that one of the reasons for McGregor’s prolonged absence from MMA is due to the promotion of the movie. Even though McGregor announced a return in June, White stated that he hopes a September return for McGregor.

Do you think Conor McGregor will have starring roles after the release of Road House? Leave your thoughts below!