SPEAKING HUMAN

BUZZ FOR YOUR BRAIN

Sesame Street Sues Puppet Movie

Sesame Street Sues Puppet Movie

We’re going to warn you that you might want to sit down. The makers of the Sesame Street brand is suing the creators of The Happytime Murders movie featuring Melissa McCarthy. That’s right—Sesame Street is suing somebody. What in the world would prompt a brand like Sesame Street to sue someone? Could it be puppet vulgarity? Nope. How about acts of violence featuring puppets? No. Puppets in sexually explicit situations? Wrong.

If you’re done guessing, we’ll help you out. It has to do with brand confusion.

While you might think that the puppets themselves would lead to the lawsuit, you’d be wrong. Sesame Workshop reportedly didn’t care all that much about the stylized puppets and their likenesses to their Intellectual Property. Instead, it was a trailer that the movie released with the tagline “No Sesame. All Street.” that prompted the lawsuit.

In the lawsuit, Sesame Workshop states that the trailer, which features “profane, drug-using, misogynistic, violent, copulating, and even ejaculating puppets” in combination with the “No Sesame. All Street.” tagline, “tarnishes” the Sesame Workshop brand, whose goal is helping “kids everywhere grow smarter, stronger and kinder.”

“We take no issue with the creative freedom of the filmmakers and their right to make and promote this movie, rather this is about how our name is being misused to market a film with which we have no association,” Sesame Workshop said in a statement about the lawsuit.

In the end, it was the blatant references to the brand in the advertising that has led to audience confusion on who is releasing the movie. It’s the brand confusion that concerns Sesame Workshop.

What is the lesson brands can learn from this?

Brand infringement can take many forms. Sometimes using the likeness of a brand or elements of a brand can be classified as infringement, leading to legal discourse. Other times, it is mere association with another organization or entity. In this case, the movie is a complete departure from the morally wholesome Sesame Street brand, amplifying the potentially negative impact it can have on its brand equity.

PLEASE NOTE: THE MOVIE TRAILER BELOW IS NOT APPROPRIATE FOR ALL AUDIENCES. WE WARNED YOU!

  • SOURCE: The New York Times
  • BRANDS: Sesame Street (Sesame Workshop)
  • WHY YOU WILL LOVE IT: You may not love it, but it might teach you a valuable lesson.

What is BUZZ?

The team has curated some of the most buzzworthy marketing related topics ever assembled in one place. Our BUZZ section houses it all—branding, advertising, pop culture, and everything in between. Check out our buzz finds—we promise they’ll blow your human mind!

MORE BUZZ

CURATED FOR HUMANS BY HUMANS

CURRENT SELECTION

SUBSCRIBE TODAY!

Get Speaking Human Delivered!
The week's best articles, podcasts and videos dropped off at your digital door every Friday—for free. No catches. No gimmicks.

WHAT'S TRENDING

SOME HUMANS LIKE...

MORE HUMAN STUFF

WORTH EXPLORING

Disclosure Odyssey Jeopardy

Spielberg. Nolan. Two legendary directors with movies out this summer. To celebrate, we’re playing a Jeopardy game devoted to their movies, characters, and careers.

Episode 207: McGruff & Most Memorable PSAs

We sniff out whether McGruff’s cartoon crime-fighting tactics still hold up today and revisit the PSAs that scared, inspired, and permanently lodged themselves in our brains.

Yogurt Cannon for the Interim Wizard

The hosts prepare for a thoughtful discussion on mystical dairy-related diplomacy, but are overtaken by executive buzzword fill-ins and titles that refuse to end.

You have Successfully Subscribed!

You have Successfully Subscribed!

Pin It on Pinterest

Shares
Share This