New Regency Sues Mann Over Heat Screenplay Rights

New Regency has sued director Michael Mann in federal court, asking a judge to invalidate notices he filed seeking to reclaim the copyright to the screenplay for the 1995 film Heat. The company argues the screenplay was created as a “work made for hire,” making it ineligible for the Copyright Act’s provision allowing authors to terminate certain rights transfers after 35 years; it says Mann’s claims cloud its ownership. Mann says the screenplay grew from his original writing and intends to defend his statutory right to reclaim it. The dispute is separate from Heat 2, which is scheduled to begin filming in January.