Director Alexander Payne sued over The Holdovers
Screenwriter Simon Stephenson accuses Payne and others of copyright infringement.
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Screenwriter Simon Stephenson has filed a case in the United States against director Alexander Payne and others involved in The Holdovers. Stephenson says the film borrowed elements from his unproduced script Frisco.
According to public reports, the complaint was filed in a federal court in the United States. Alongside Payne, screenwriter David Hemingson, producer Mark Johnson and several production and distribution companies are also named.
Stephenson claims that The Holdovers bears similarities to his script Frisco. According to the reports, these include the combination of an older man, a rebellious teenager and an unexpected journey taken together. Stephenson also says that Payne had previously seen the script.
The Holdovers is said to have been released in 2023 and to have received several Oscar nominations. The film is said to follow a teacher who remains at a boarding school during the Christmas holidays with a pupil. The precise legal assessment of the similarities between the two scripts has yet to take place.
Payne is said to have previously denied the accusation. He has said that The Holdovers was partly inspired by the 1935 French film Merlusse, about a teacher who looks after children left behind during the Christmas holidays.
The complaint does not mean that the judge has already established that plagiarism or copyright infringement has occurred. The case must first be heard by the court. According to the reports, Stephenson is seeking compensation for financial damages and restrictions on further exploitation.
The issue arises in an industry where ideas, screenplays and early versions often circulate through producers, agents and studios. A similarity in premise or storyline is not automatically sufficient for a legal conviction. Among other things, it must be established which protected text or creative expression was actually copied.
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Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The complaint, the parties involved and the substance of Stephenson’s allegations have been confirmed by public reports. The article makes clear that the case has not yet been decided on its merits.
- confirmed Simon Stephenson has sued Alexander Payne and others involved in The Holdovers. — Confirmed by TheWrap and The A.V. Club. source
- confirmed Stephenson says that The Holdovers bears similarities to his script Frisco. — The content is attributed to the claimant. source
- confirmed Payne has said that Merlusse, released in 1935, was a source of inspiration. — Mentioned in public reporting about the earlier allegations. source
Editor's note
The lawsuit and the main allegations have been reported by multiple public entertainment sources. The allegations are explicitly described as claims made by the plaintiff; there has not yet been a court ruling.Sources
More on this in Dutch media
- Het Parool — „alexander payne”
- Trouw — „alexander payne”
- NRC — „alexander payne”