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Director Quentin Tarantino Sued by Miramax Over ‘Pulp Fiction’ NFTs

The powerhouse entertainment company that produced the film has its own NFT plans and says the sale isn’t covered by Tarantino’s republishing rights.

By Eli Tan
Updated May 11, 2023, 6:02 p.m. Published Nov 16, 2021, 11:49 p.m.
Filmmaker Quentin Tarantino speaks during the Annual Non-Fungible Token (NFT) Event in New York, U.S., on Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021. NFT.NYC brings together over 500 speakers from the crypto, blockchain, and NFT communities for a three-day event of discussions and workshops. Photographer: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Filmmaker Quentin Tarantino speaks during the Annual Non-Fungible Token (NFT) Event in New York, U.S., on Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021. NFT.NYC brings together over 500 speakers from the crypto, blockchain, and NFT communities for a three-day event of discussions and workshops. Photographer: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Famed director Quentin Tarantino is being sued by Miramax for copyright infringement after Tarantino announced he would be auctioning off a collection of non-fungible tokens (NFT) from his celebrated movie “Pulp Fiction” at the recent NFT NYC conference.

  • The seven NFTs being sold are from different scenes that were cut from the final film, for which Miramax currently owns the rights.
  • While Tarantino owns the rights to publish the film’s screenplay, Miramax, the powerhouse entertainment company that produced and distributed the 1994 film, says the one-time NFT sale falls outside that categorization.
  • The company sent a cease-and-desist letter to Tarantino to stop the sale, but the director has continued to push forward with his plans.
  • Miramax attorney Bart Williams said in a statement that the studio has plans to “maximize” the film’s NFT rights “through a strategic, comprehensive approach.”
  • The lawsuit is complicated by the fact the NFTs are “secret,” meaning the tokens are programmed so that only their owners can view the deleted scenes. The studio is suing the director over content that it hasn’t seen.

Read more: NFTs Take Over NYC

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