Sax Man Leo Pellegrino Pressing Charges on Epic Over Fortnite Dance

Throw a dart at your calendar, that will be the next day we report on someone suing Epic Games over a Fortnite Emote. Professional saxophonist Leo Pellegrino is pressing charges against the game company for the unlawful usage of his likeness.

According to a lawsuit filed last week in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, reported on by Haydn Taylor, Epic is being accused of using Pellegrino's likeness and fame to sell their "Phone it in" dance emote. The filing claims that the "trademark moves have become inseparable from his persona and his life story." And that by using the dance and his likeness to this degree, Epic is allegedly guilty of unauthorized use of likeness, invasion of privacy, misappropriation of publicity, and unjust enrichment.



Unlike the previous case where actor Alfonso Ribeiro tried to take action against the use of the Carlton Dance, which was dropped, this suit is calling to the use of Pellegrino's likeness and story, and not the dance moves.



Pellegrino rose to fame in 2014 when his group outfit, Too Many Zooz, went viral in a video of them playing in a New York Subway Station. Since then, he has gone on to perform at a number of major live events. His unique dance style, which the filing calls "duck footed" is the result of a special deformity to his body. The filing claims that this unique style is inseparable from himself and his character.
 

"As he developed his performance persona, Pellegrino incorporated the Signature Move into his performances playing the saxophone."

We notice that part of the Phone it in emote also uses the hip-thrusting motion made famous by Sergey Stepanov, the Moldovan saxophonist that performed in the 2010 Eurovision Song Contest. The motion itself was made into a massive internet meme under the name Epic Sax Guy.

This really enforces the idea that Epic's animation team is incapable of their own creative thoughts.