Documentary filmmaker Morgan Spurlock — best known for directing the McDonald’s wry documentary “Super Size Me” — dropped a lawsuit he brought against a film production company over a proposed NASCAR film.
Spurlock had alleged there was a broken promise to finance a documentary giving a unique insight into NASCAR and its drivers.
Through his company, Warrior Poets Inc., Morgan Spurlock had filed the complaint on April 21 in Los Angeles Superior Court against Broad Green Pictures LLC, seeking at least $2 million and alleging breach of contract, fraud and negligent misrepresentation. Defense attorneys stated in their court papers that the lawsuit’s allegations were “baseless.”
However, plaintiffs’ attorney Michael Weinsten filed court papers Aug. 31 requesting dismissal of the case. The documents did not state whether a settlement was reached or if the case was not being pursued for other reasons.
The suit stated that Warrior Poets and BGP reached an agreement for the defendant to finance the $5 million cost of the NASCAR documentary and distribute it. BGP provided the initial funds to start production and touted itself in a press release, the suit stated.
Spurlock, a lifelong NASCAR fan, considered the deal “the opportunity of a lifetime” and believed that it would be his greatest work ever, according to the lawsuit. He spent five years researching and developing the project, according to the suit.
However, after Warrior Poets spent “substantial efforts and funds on the production of the documentary,” BGP announced in January that it was reneging on its commitments and would no longer be involved in the project, the suit alleged.
Warrior Poets was left “hanging mid-production without a financier and saddled with more than $2 million in unrecouped production debts” incurred in reliance on BGP’s promises, the suit alleged.
In the absence of promised funding, Warrior Poets had to stop production “at a time much of the critical NASCAR footage was about to be filmed,” according to the lawsuit.
Spurlock is best known for directing “Super Size Me,” which followed him as he ate only McDonald’s food for 30 days. The 2004 film received an Oscar nomination for best documentary feature.
— City News Service