Warner Bros Discovery files suit against AI photo generator for stealing Superman, Scooby-Doo

Warner Bros Discovery has sued AI photo generation company Midjourney, alleging it of brazenly stealing the studio’s works to generate images of Batman, Superman, Scooby-Doo and other copyrighted characters. Warner Bros in its complaint filed said the theft enabled Midjourney to train its image and video service to offer subscribers high quality, downloadable images of its characters in “every imaginable scene.”

"Midjourney thinks it is above the law," the company wrote in its lawsuit. It said that the image generator sells a commercial subscription service powered by AI technology that was illegally trained using its copyrighted works.

Midjourney has also been charged with blocking subscribers from generating videos from many infringing images. Those restrictions were lifted last month, framing the change as an “improvement.”

The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages, disgorgement of profits, and a permanent injunction against further infringements.

This action follows a similar lawsuit in June filed by Walt Disney and Comcast’s Universal, targeting Midjourney for unauthorized use of characters such as Darth Vader, Shrek, Bart Simpson, and Ariel from The Little Mermaid.

The ability to generate Warner Bros.' characters are a clear draw for its subscription service that costs $10 to $120 a month, the media conglomerate said.

"It is hard to imagine copyright infringement that is any more willful than what Midjourney is doing here," the plaintiff added. "Midjourney has prioritized and sought to preserve the hundreds of millions of dollars it earns annually from its service by doubling down on its theft of copyrighted works."