Award-winning actor Will Smith can now move on to other projects after his big win in the “Gemini Man” lawsuit.
The actor has successfully cleared his name in a lawsuit filed by a science fiction author who claimed that the 2019 film “Gemini Man” was a copy of his work.
Will Smith was sued alongside Skydance Productions, Gemini Pictures, Paramount Pictures, David Ellison, and various other defendants for copyright infringement.
A federal judge officially dismissed all claims against Will on January 31st in the case filed by Kissinger Sibanda.
However, the judge has decided not to dismiss the entire lawsuit, allowing the author to proceed with his remaining claims against the other defendants.
Back in August 2024, Sibanda initiated a lawsuit for $1.7 million against several parties, including Will and the production companies, claiming the “Gemini Man” film plagiarized his science fiction novel, “The Return to Gibraltar.”
According to In Touch, Sibanda stated that “the book details an African American who is cloned and used in a time-traveling program without his permission.”
Sibanda explained that the film has had a long and troubled development history, dating back to 1997, when the original script was written. Over the years, various actors were considered for the lead role before Will ultimately took it on
Sibanda recalled giving a copy of his book to Will’s stunt double and sending copies to Hollywood’s most prominent talent agent. His lawsuit read:
“The defendants struggled to make the movie until [he] released his book in 2011 thereafter they changed the film’s marketing strategy – taking themes, plots, characterizations, context, and cultural subtexts from the book to create their movie, Gemini Man.”
The author argued that his book highlighted the cultural significance of its black protagonist in a cinematic context. He also claimed it provided a comprehensive narrative explaining cloning and its scientific implications rather than just presenting isolated ideas and facts.
“In addition to the literary tool of deception in a cloned army used against the protagonist. Interestingly enough, the protagonist in The Return to Gibraltar is a Harvard man, similar to the younger version of the Will Smith cloned in Gemini Man,” the lawsuit concluded.
The author stated that he sent a legal letter to the defendants in 2020, but they failed to respond or provide him with any kind of financial settlement.
In November 2024, Will, Ellison, and the production companies responded to the lawsuit filed by the author. They argued that the writer had previously attempted to bring similar claims in a case that had been dismissed for multiple reasons, noting that he could not pursue the same claims again.
Notably, the director was not named as a defendant in that earlier lawsuit, and the court had dismissed Sibanda’s entire action due to his failure to register his copyright before filing.
Shortly after this ruling, the author hastily filed a new complaint that included claims of civil conspiracy and unjust enrichment despite being warned that these claims were legally and factually inadequate.
“Gemini Man” reportedly had an estimated budget of $138 million before marketing expenses, but it only managed to generate $173 million in global box office revenue.
“Gemini Man” is a science fiction action thriller that traces its origins back to a script by Darren Lemke from 1997, spending over two decades in development before finally reaching audiences.