Epic Is Once Again Getting Sued Over A Fortnite Dance

Epic Games is once again on the receiving end of a lawsuit, and it is once again thanks to an emote inside Fornite. According to PC Gamer, Rachel McCumbers — the mother of Orange Shirt Kid — is suing Epic over Fortnite's use of the Orange Justice emote that pays homage to the dance her son created.

Unsurprisingly, McCumbers and mini-McCumbers are being represented by the same law firm being used by Alfonso Ribeiro, Backpack Kid, and rapper 2Milly: Pierce Bainbridge Beck Price & Hecht LLP.

We knew that more of these would come down the pipeline. In fact, we started collecting them here, in a post that will now have to include Orange Shirt Kid. But this one, more than any of the others, feels more like a grab at a possible settlement than a legitimate beef with Epic over use of the dance.

After all, how long has it been?

The contest Epic ran — the one Orange Shirt Kid entered with his dance – took place in early 2018. The Orange Justice dance was added in May 2018. And Orange Shirt Kid, before seemingly wiping himself off of social media, seemed overjoyed that Epic added his moves to the game. He was just a regular kid back then, of course. A kid hoping to see his weird dance show up in video game form.

Fast forward to present day, though, and the lawsuit filed on behalf of Orange Shirt Kid's mom tells a very different tale. Ms. McCumbers' son is now "a child performer", according to the suit. And the suit also claims that Epic made use of a "Catchphrase" – no joke — that is the creative work of Orange Shirt Kid by including "It's also a great exercise move" as the Orange Justice emote's description.

The entire thing seems bonkers. Much later in the suit's accompanying complaint document, the lawyers try to claim that the emote's inclusion is "implicitly representing that Orange Shirt Kid consented to Epic's use of his likeness." If they mean he was never cool with the emote, his now-deleted tweet of "THEY ADDED IT OMGOMG" and months of silence on the topic seem to contradict that claim.

Regardless, it looks like Epic has yet another lawsuit on its hands. And if Pierce Bainbridge Beck Price & Hecht LLP can find more takers, it probably won't be the last.