Warner Bros. Discovery sues Midjourney for copyright theft

Media corporation Warner Bros Discovery has filed a lawsuit against AI startup Midjourney, accusing it of copyright infringement for allowing users to generate images and videos of characters such as Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Bugs Bunny and Scooby-Doo without permission.

In a complaint filed in Los Angeles federal court, Warner Bros said Midjourney used its works to train AI models and offer subscribers downloadable content featuring its characters.

The studio also said Midjourney knowingly engaged in wrongful conduct, noting that it had once restricted users from creating videos based on copyrighted images but later lifted those protections.

“Midjourney has made a calculated and profit-driven decision to offer zero protection for copyright owners even though Midjourney knows about the breathtaking scope of its piracy and copyright infringement,” the complaint said.

Warner Bros is seeking damages, the return of any profits earned from the alleged infringement, and an order to stop further violations.

The move makes Warner Bros the third major entertainment company to pursue Midjourney for damages following Disney and Universal's similar lawsuit filed earlier this year. 

In that lawsuit, Disney and Universal accused Midjourney of misusing characters including Darth Vader, Bart Simpson and Shrek. Midjourney argued that training generative AI models on copyrighted works falls under the fair use doctrine of U.S. copyright law.

Midjourney, founded in 2022 by David Holz, had about 21 million users and $300 million in revenue in 2024, according to Warner Bros.

Cover image: Midjourney/Creative commons