The creators of Fortnite were hit with a wave of lawsuits over the past few months for unauthorized use of popular dances. 2Milly sued the video game creators over the "Milly Rock" and Backpack Kid sued them over his "Floss Dance." Alfonso Ribeiro, who played Will Smith's cousin on Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air, sued the company over the use of the "Carlton Dance." Unfortunately, he's dropped the case against them and it seems to do with his bid with the copyright offices.
According to The Blast, Alfonso Ribeiro dropped his lawsuit against the Fortnite creators over the "Carlton Dance." The documents state, “This action is dismissed by the Plaintiff(s) in its entirety." The decision to drop the case seems to be due to his request to trademark to dance was denied by the U.S. Copyright Office.
“The reaction from many players worldwide was immediate recognition of the emote as embodying The Dance and, in turn, Ribeiro,” the lawsuit claimed. “Indeed, by naming the emote ‘Fresh,’ Epic intentionally induced a direct connection between the in-game purchase and the show where The Dance started, ‘The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.’ That connection implied an endorsement of that in-game purchase by Ribeiro.”
An expert claimed that his iconic dance that peaked in popularity in the 90s was nothing but a "simple dance routine."
"The combination of these three dance steps is a simple routine that is not registrable as a choreographic work," an expert said.
