By the time movies come to your screen — be that at your local theater or in your living room — hundreds of people’s thoughts, ideas, and labor have gone into it. From the producers and stars to the office PAs and caterers, every movie is a group project involving plenty of strong personalities and big egos. Often, that means behind-the-scenes drama that fans never learn about unless it goes to court.
One instance of behind-the-scenes drama that did, in fact, make it to the courts, now has led to something very strange: a rights dispute resulting in two different sequel projects of the same source material.
Our saga begins in January 2024, ahead of the release of Amazon’s remake of Road House, the classic 1989 Patrick Swayze action movie. The remake seemingly had all it needed to succeed, including a big star in Jake Gyllenhaal and direction by renowned action director Doug Liman. But in a lambasting guest article in Deadline, Liman stated he wouldn’t attend the movie’s premiere at SXSW because Amazon did not plan a theatrical release for the movie. “Amazon asked me and the film community to trust them and their public statements about supporting cinemas, and then they turned around and are using Road House to sell plumbing fixtures,” he wrote. (He eventually changed his mind and attended the premiere, but the bad blood is clearly still there.)
The second bit of drama here revolves around R. Lance Hill, the original screenwriter of the 1986 script that became Road House. He believes he is the true owner of the Road House property, not MGM (currently owned by Amazon), because the copyright would have expired after 35 years unless it is a “work for hire,” which is exactly what Amazon believes it was. Amazon apparently clearly understood this rights deadline, as Hill previously sued the streamer for allegedly using A.I. to replicate actors’ voices in order to finish the film before the rights reverted. The rights dispute is currently being worked out in federal court, but it hasn’t stopped both parties from planning ahead.
According to Deadline, Liman has acquired the sequel rights to Hill’s original screenplay and plans to direct Road House: Dylan, a sequel originally written by Hill. This will compete with Amazon’s existing plans for a sequel to the 2024 Road House, which was greenlit in May 2024 with Ilya Naishuller replacing Liman as director.
So at this moment, both Liman/Hill and Amazon believe themselves to be the “true” owners of the Road House IP, and are both trying to cash in on its recent success with a sequel. Everything hinges on this lawsuit: not only would it be a landmark case in complex IP law surrounding works from the 1980s, it would also dictate what the future of the title actually looks like. Amazon seems confident, as production on its Road House 2 has already begun, but we won’t know for sure until it's worked out in court.
