Lindsay Lohan’s 10-page lawsuit that was filed against Take-Two for allegedly using her likeness without permission in Grand Theft Auto 5, is now a 67-page complaint. The complaint has been amended to allow this kind of lawsuit to progress under New York state law.
The original complaint was filed in July when Lohan claimed that the character “Lacey Jonas” in a GTA V side mission was an “unequivocal” reference to her. Take-Two responded, saying that Jonas and Lohan were similar only as far as they are both young, blond women and that Lohan was suing only for “publicity purposes”.
The amended complaint adds dozens of real-world photos of Lohan that she claims Rockstar used as reference for GTA V. According to the complaint, the publisher “used a look-a-like model to evoke the persona and image” of Lohan, by imitating a photo that was taken of her back in 2007. The blond character, allegedly based on Lohan, was used on merchandise such as t-shirts and coffee mugs as well as advertising on billboards, posters and websites.
The complaint also argues that GTA V does not represent “transformative” use of her likeness which would invoke the free speech protections of the First Amendment.
“The Defendants were in the business of selling games as opposed to artists displaying artwork in galleries for profit where unauthorized images or portraits of individuals were reproduced in limited editions as opposed to the mass production for commercial promotion and financial gain.”
(via Gamespot, HollywoodReporter)