Man Sues Marvel Claiming ‘X-Men’ Cartoon Theme Song Was Stolen From A Hungarian TV Series; Listen To Both And Compare For Yourself
It’s been 22 years sinceX-Men(akaX-Men: The Animated Series) went off the air, but arguably the most famous aspect of that show – its stellar opening theme song – is now at the center of a lawsuit that was filed against companies like Marvel, Apple, Amazon, The Walt Disney Company, and more. The suit claims that the iconic instrumental opening rips off the theme song from a 1980s Hungarian TV show calledLinda, and you’re able to listen to both songs below to see if you think he has a point.
Linda Opening Theme Song
That does sound pretty similar, but I’m not sure if the two sound close enough for there to be a winning legal case here – but I’m pretty confident that the person who filed the suit is asking forwaymore than he thinks he can get. According toDeadline, a Florida man named Zoltan Krisko has filed the suit saying he representsGyorgy Vukan, the late composer of theLindatheme song, which Krisko says is “a household name in Hungary and an entire country could identify the series through its iconic soundtrack.”
But get this: Krisko is not only alleging that theX-Mentheme ripped off theLindatheme, but he also says, “The soundtrack ofX-Mencontributed in a substantial manner to the business success of the X-Men” – meaning the entire brand, including the multi-billion dollar film franchise. This dude is basically saying that theX-Men: The Animated Seriestheme was so rad, it impacted the success of everyX-Menmovie that came afterward, even though the song clearly doesn’t appear in any of those films. That’s a bold claim, and seems like it would be incredibly difficult to prove in a court.
Disney, Marvel, Haim Saban, and others are named in the suit because of their association with the animated series itself, but Krisko is also going after Amazon and Apple for allegedly violating Vukan’s copyright by selling episodes of the show online without the proper permission. There’s no word yet on if the suit will be tossed out or if this could actually go to trial, but it’s a fascinating and bizarre case with the potential for major financial implications from some of the world’s biggest media companies.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to see if I can track down all of the episodes ofLinda, because based on the video of its opening theme, that show looks like must-watch entertainment.
