Matt and Ross Duffer have issued an official statement responding to new allegations they stole the idea for their hit Netflix series Stranger Things.
The damaging claims come from filmmaker Charlie Kessler, who alleges the Duffer Brothers ripped off his 2012 short film Montauk to create Stranger Things, using his script, idea, story and film as the source material for the Netflix series.
An official statement from the Duffer Brothers' lawyer Alex Kohner now reads as follows:
Mr. Kessler's claim is completely meritless. He had no connection to the creation or development of Stranger Things. The Duffer Brothers have neither seen Mr. Kessler's short film nor discussed any project with him. This is just an attempt to profit from other people's creativity and hard work.
In Kessler's lawsuit, the filmmaker claims he originally pitched Montauk to the Duffer Brothers as a television series, but their talks stalled and no deal was ever reached.
Earlier today, TMZ ran a story containing what is alleged to be the original casting call for Stranger Things. The casting call contains the following: "You have a self tape request for the Netflix series 'Montauk' starring Winona Ryder."
The document also lists Matt and Ross Duffer as writers and directors of the series.
According to Kessler, his original pitch meeting with the Duffer Brothers took place in April 2014. But after they failed to strike any sort deal, the Duffer Brothers reportedly then began casting their series, then called Montauk.
You can read the full TMZ story with the original Stranger Things casting call here.
The damaging claims come from filmmaker Charlie Kessler, who alleges the Duffer Brothers ripped off his 2012 short film Montauk to create Stranger Things, using his script, idea, story and film as the source material for the Netflix series.
An official statement from the Duffer Brothers' lawyer Alex Kohner now reads as follows:
Mr. Kessler's claim is completely meritless. He had no connection to the creation or development of Stranger Things. The Duffer Brothers have neither seen Mr. Kessler's short film nor discussed any project with him. This is just an attempt to profit from other people's creativity and hard work.
In Kessler's lawsuit, the filmmaker claims he originally pitched Montauk to the Duffer Brothers as a television series, but their talks stalled and no deal was ever reached.
Earlier today, TMZ ran a story containing what is alleged to be the original casting call for Stranger Things. The casting call contains the following: "You have a self tape request for the Netflix series 'Montauk' starring Winona Ryder."
The document also lists Matt and Ross Duffer as writers and directors of the series.
According to Kessler, his original pitch meeting with the Duffer Brothers took place in April 2014. But after they failed to strike any sort deal, the Duffer Brothers reportedly then began casting their series, then called Montauk.
You can read the full TMZ story with the original Stranger Things casting call here.
