It seems NBC’s new show, ‘Timeless,’ is already getting into trouble as it might be that the show that was ripped off of its original creators. The story that is being spouted by Spanish producers Onza Partners is that ‘Timeless’ is a ripoff of ‘El Minister del Tiempo,’ which is a Spanish series about “a small team of government agents travel back in time to change the past and ensure the future.” And yes, that is basically exactly what ‘Timeless’ is about, which is where the problem lies. Apparently 18 months ago (according to the lawsuit), Onza gave the Gersh Partners a copy of ‘El Minister del Tiempo’ with hopes of developing it for American television. They even envisioned Ben Edlund and Erik Kripke as ideal producers for the series, the very same producers that Sony went with when they supposedly cut Onza out of the deal. So now Onza is suing NBC, Sony and Kripke for copyright infringement and going even further by suing Sony and Kripke for breach of implied contract. According to the complaint filed by attorney Devin McRae:
“[I]t was understood by all concerned that any persons or entities being given access by Ashton or Gersh to the Original Series DVD…would be given such access solely for the purpose of assisting Onza in developing and exploiting Onza’s American Version…While precise financial terms relative to any American Version were to be worked out among Onza and the other parties brought into the deal by Gersh, no American Version was to be made without Onza’s consent.”
Do you think Sony and Kripe really ripped off the Onza Partners, or is it just a strange coincidence? If you believe the allegations, would you still want to watch this version of the story? Share your opinions on the matter in the comments below!
Source: Deadline
Nick is a freelance writer based in Los Angeles, who belongs to the privileged few who enjoyed the ending to ‘Lost.’ For more of Nick’s thoughts and articles, follow him on Twitter (@starfro67)
