Beastie Boys sue Chili’s parent company for unauthorized use of

Beastie Boys are suing the parent company of restaurant chain Chili’s for the alleged unauthorized use of their hit “Sabotage,” as well as the depiction of characters similar to the band members’ likenesses in the song’s iconic music video.

Surviving Beasties Boys members Adam Horovitz (Ad-Rock) and Michael Diamond (Mike D), along with the estate of the late Adam Yauch (MCA), filed a suit against Brinker International on Wednesday (July 10th), accusing the company of copyright infringement and trademark violations.

The lawsuit claims that Brinker International used the song “Sabotage” in a social media ad to promote Chili’s, and that the visuals in the ad mirrored those of the song’s music video. An excerpt from the lawsuit reads as follows:

“Commencing at some time unknown to plaintiffs but, they are informed and believe, no earlier than November 2022, Brinker produced, sponsored, and encouraged the creation and posting on social media of videos to promote Brinker’s ‘Chili’s’ restaurants that included musical compositions and sound recordings that were used without the permission of the rights owners. One such video used, without Plaintiffs’ permission or consent, significant portions of the musical composition and sound recording of ‘Sabotage’ (the ‘Unauthorized Chili’s Video’). Further, Brinker synchronized Plaintiffs’ ‘Sabotage’ musical composition and sound recording with other visual material in the Unauthorized Chili’s Video, in which three characters wearing obvious 70s-style wigs, fake mustaches, and sunglasses who were intended to evoke the three members of Beastie Boys performed scenes depicting them ‘robbing’ ingredients from a Chili’s restaurant intercut with fictitious opening credits, in ways obviously similar to and intended to evoke in the minds of the public scenes from Plaintiff’s well-known Official ‘Sabotage’ video. Use of the ‘Sabotage’ sound recording, music composition and video was all without permission; the plaintiffs do not license ‘Sabotage’ or any of their other intellectual property for third-party product advertising purposes, and deceased Beastie Boys member Adam Yauch included a provision in his will prohibiting such uses.”

The Beasties are seeking to block Brinker from any further infringements, as well as “an award of statutory damages … pursuant to the Copyright Act in an amount in each case of not less than $150,000 for the willful infringement of the Beastie Boys Musical Composition, and the Beastie Boys Sound Recordings or … actual damages and profits with respect to each of the foregoing copyrights as permitted under the Copyright Act, in an amount to be determined at trial.”

Back in 2014, Beastie Boys won a $1.7 million judgement against Monster Beverage for using the band’s music without permission.

Furthermore, a provision in Adam Yauch’s will prevents the Beasties from using any of their music to promote any third-party products in commercials.

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