Quentin Tarantino Hit With Lawsuit Over 'Pulp Fiction' NFTs

Quentin Tarantino has been sued over the sale of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) featuring uncut and so-far secret scenes from his 1994 cult classic film "Pulp Fiction" that were announced earlier this month.

What Happened: While Katia Shabanova, CEO and founder of startup-focused Forward PR Studio — who has experience working with NFT projects — described Tarantino's initiative  as "an amazing breakthrough for the movie industry in the space of decentralized technologies." "Pulp Fiction" producer Miramax was less than thrilled and filed a lawsuit against Tarantino alleging that it possesses rights to the film and the NFTs infringe them, according to a Tuesday Variety report.

In the complaint, Miramax said that Tarantino "kept his Pulp Fiction NFT plans secret from Miramax" and even ignored a cease-and-desist related to the sale. The producer also alleges the director said his so-called reserved rights allow him to issue such NFTs.

In its complaint, Miramax states that the NFT issuance initiative constitutes a breach of contract, unfair competition and trademark infringement. The firm wrote that "Tarantino’s conduct has forced Miramax to bring this lawsuit against a valued collaborator" to "enforce, preserve, and protect its contractual and intellectual property rights relating to one of Miramax’s most iconic and valuable film properties."

Miramax believes that Tarantino's actions could lead others to believe that the firm is involved in the initiative and set a precedent that would have others believe that "they have the rights to pursue similar deals or offerings, when in fact Miramax holds the rights needed to develop, market, and sell NFTs relating to its deep film library."