Director claims Apple, Shyamalan plagiarised her horror movie
Director Francesca Gregorini is suing both Apple and famed director M Night Shyamalan, claiming a TV series devised and developed by Shyamalan is a “brazen” copy of her 2013 film “ The Truth About Emanuel,” according to court documents filed in California.
The suit, filed in the US District Court of Central District of California, claims the Apple TV series “ Servant”, featuring a grieving mother, includes a number of striking similarities with Gregorini’s earlier work.
Both Apple and Shyamalan are named as defendants, along with several other individuals, including Tony Basgallop, the writer and creator of “Servant”.
The filing claims that “Servant” is a “brazen copy of plaintiff’s 2013 feature film” with “the misappropriation not a mere borrowed premise, idea or story. Mr Shyamalan has gone so far as to appropriate not just the plot of Emanuel, but also its use of cinematic language, creating a substantially similar feeling, mood, and theme.”
The filing also claims that Shyamalan’s offering “bears a number of other striking similarities to Emanuel, even with regard to its details and imagery. The two nannies look alike [and] in both works, imagery of water plays a prominent role.”
“Having a very personal labour of love stolen is soul-crushing,” Gregorini said in a press release.
Both Apple and Shyamalan have been contacted for comment.
Servant is an American psychological horror television series, produced for Apple TV+ and debuted on November 28, 2019. It deals with a couple's emotional trauma following the death of their young child. Servant has already been renewed for a second season.
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