A production company with the rights to the classic XXX flick “Deep Throat” is suing to block the release of a new film about the late porn star Linda Lovelace and how she scored the lead role in the 1972 hit.
Nevada-based Arrow Productions filed a $10 million copyright-infringement suit in Manhattan federal court today against The Weinstein Company, the Big Apple-based producers of biopic “Lovelace.” With the film set to hit theaters Friday, the suit also seeks a court order to block its marketing and distribution.
The suit contends Weinstein used more than five minutes of “copyrighted” footage from “Deep Throat” for the 92-minute film “Lovelace,” which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January and stars sexy actress Amanda Seyfried.
It also alleges that the “Lovelace” title was wrongfully used without proper permission since Arrow owns its trademark rights.
“Arrow and its partners were surprised to hear about ‘Lovelace,’ because no one had approached Arrow for a license to use any of Arrow’s intellectual property,” the suit says.
Prior to Arrow’s involvement, profits from “Deep Throat,” which was produced more than four decades ago by associates of the Columbo crime family in Florida, actually helped fund a criminal enterprise that included drug smuggling in the Caribbean.
“Lovelace” tracks the life of Lovelace, her abusive marriage to Chuck Traynor and how she landed the lead role in “Deep Throat.” Lovelace, whose real name was Linda Boreman, would later go on to be an anti-pornography activist before dying at age 53 from a 2002 car accident.
Lawyers for Arrow and Weinstein did not return messages.