Fox(NEW YORK) — Fox has prevailed in the case of an actor who claimed a character in The Simpsons is based on him, in violation of his publicity rights.
The Godfather Part II and Goodfellas actor Frank Sivero filed a 250-million-dollar lawsuit against the network last year, claiming the Simpsons character Louie, a crony of the mobster Fat Tony, has an appearance and mannerisms that are “strongly evocative” of him.
Sivero further claimed that a few years prior to the debut of Louie on the show in 1991, there wereSimpsons writers who were aware he was creating a gangster character for Goodfellas named Frankie Carbone, which was based on his personality. Goodfellas was released in 1990.
A Los Angeles judge on Thursday issued a tentative ruling to dismiss the lawsuit, determining the Louie character doesn’t bear a strong resemblance to Sivero, Deadline reports.
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