A screenwriter has filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against multiple parties, including Illumination Entertainment and Universal Pictures, for allegedly copying elements of his screenplay, South for the Winter, for Migration.
On Friday (June 26), Kenneth Giavara filed a federal copyright infringement lawsuit against screenwriter Mike White, Illumination, and Universal — claiming that the Illumination film Migration rips off his South for the Winter screenplay that he wrote in 2007.
In the complaint, viewed by Complex, Giavara claimed that Migration copied multiple elements from his South for the Winter screenplay, such as its plot, themes, characters, dialogue, and setting.
He pointed to the similarities in the two stories as proof of the infringement. Both include bird families that live in New England with overprotective fathers named Mac or Mack, plus migration journeys that feature NYC’s Central Park as a key setting. Giavara alleges that Migration could not have been made independently because of the serious amount of overlap between it and South for the Winter.
Since South for the Winter won first place in one of the categories of the Fresh Voices Screenplay Competition in 2011, and got recognition in several other competitions — and because he spent seven years trying to get it made — Giavara believes that White could have gotten a hold of the screenplay.
Giavara is seeking damages, profits that were generated by the film, attorney’s fees, and a writing credit on Migration.
Migration came out in 2023, featuring a starring cast of Kumail Nanjiani, Elizabeth Banks, Keegan-Michael Key, Awkwafina, and Danny DeVito. The film grossed more than $300 million at the box office on a $72 million budget.
White, the writer at the center of the lawsuit, is also known for writing and directing HBO’s The White Lotus and has won three Emmys because of it. He’s also credited for writing The Emoji Movie and co-writing Despicable Me 4.
