Years-long legal dispute: Court: Author is entitled to more money for Schweiger’s cinema hits

The screenwriter Anika Decker is entitled to a higher share of the total income from Til Schweiger’s cinema hits “Keinohrhasen” and “Zweiohrküken”. The Berlin regional court decided this on Wednesday after years of litigation. The author has thus achieved success with her lawsuit against the production company and rights holder Barefoot Films and the media group Warner Bros. – financially she has little benefit from it. According to the ruling, the majority of their claims are time-barred. “She should have filed a lawsuit much earlier because she knew that the films were so successful in the cinema,” said presiding judge Rolf Danckwerts.

The ruling is based on the “fairness paragraph” in copyright law. It provides for additional payment if the originally agreed remuneration and the income subsequently achieved are noticeably disproportionate. From the court’s point of view, that is the case in this case. “Keinohrhasen” was the most successful German film in cinemas in 2008. “Zweiohrchicken” also later attracted millions of visitors.

The judgment is not final. Those involved can appeal against this. The German Screenplay Association initially reacted cautiously to the decision. “We welcome the fact that the court has granted the claim for additional compensation,” said managing director Jan Herchenröder. With regard to the statute of limitations, however, he added: “The situation of creatives is not such that we can immediately assess success in all forms of exploitation.” It is unfortunate that Decker, as the plaintiff, has to pay for a large part of the court costs, according to the judgment.