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May 25, 2013

'MacGruber!' The Creator of 'MacGyver' Wants to Stop the Movie. 'MacGruber!'

by Bob Sassone, posted Feb 3rd 2010 1:08PM

MacGyver
Twenty seconds MacGruber!

So fans of the Will Forte/Kristin Wiig 'Saturday Night Live' sketch 'MacGruber' are counting down the minutes to the April release of the big screen version of the small screen parody. Or maybe we're not counting the minutes. This movie could suck like a Dyson vacuum cleaner. Or it could be really funny! Who knows? Movies based on 'SNL' sketches could easily go either way.

One person who doesn't want us to find out is Lee David Zlotoff. He created 'MacGyver' back in the 1980s and he wants to stop the movie from being released. Zlotoff has a deal to bring 'MacGyver' himself to the big-screen and doesn't want to see this parody there as well. Zlotoff's lawyer says that the film is "infringing on our rights." I wonder if the filmmakers neglected to get a thumbs up from Zlotoff and Paramount before making the movie? Zlotoff has also been a producer/writer on various shows, including 'NCIS,' 'Hill Street Blues,' 'Bret Maverick,' and 'Remington Steele.'

[via Pop Candy]

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David D

This movie's been in the works for a long time. If the guy wanted it stopped, why didn't he react like this when it was announced? Oh, wait -- it's much more embarrassing for the MacGruber people to be sued AFTER they've spent all their money.

February 03 2010 at 7:30 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
colby

I think Zlotoff is going to be disappointed the next time he's in contact with Richard Dean Anderson ... judging by his participation in a Macguber sketch, I'm thinking he's a fan.

February 03 2010 at 4:33 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
CMG

Zlotoff is going to be rather disappointed when he inevitably loses this case, after SNL Films' lawyers cite Campbell v. Acuff-Rose, which defined commercial parody as fair use.

February 03 2010 at 2:56 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to CMG's comment
Frantic Monkey

You beat me to it. Fair dealing applies for parody and satire. You'd think his lawyers would know that.

February 03 2010 at 3:34 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
meg

i was actually in the focus group for the test screening of macgruber and it was surprisingly good! i seriously doubted the ability to turn a 60 second skit into a quality full length movie, but jorma did the best he possibly could have with the given material. it's definitely not the best SNL movie (it's no blues brothers!) but i definitely wouldn't rate it at the bottom with say, night at the roxbury. i think people with low expectations will be pleasantly surprised.

February 03 2010 at 1:50 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply

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