Disney-owned Lucasfilm has sued a car wash on the outskirts of the Chilean capital Santiago that it accuses of infringing its Star Wars trademark, Reuters reported, citing the company’s lawyers in Chile.
A car wash called “Star Wash” shared photos and videos on social media showing its employees serving customers dressed as Darth Vader, The Mandalorian, Boba Fett, Chewbacca or Cassian Andor.
Check out this Instagram post
The law firm representing the car wash says its owner, Matias Jara, had already filed to register his brand with INAPI, Chile’s trademark authority, when he received a subpoena from Lucasfilm, which produces the Star Wars movies and series for Disney.
Check out this Instagram post
The American entertainment giant bought Lucasfilm in 2012 from director George Lucas, creator of the first two Star Wars movie trilogies, for $4.05 billion.
The law firm representing “Star Wash” says Lucasfilm asked to block the registration of the laundry name on the grounds that the Chilean brand could be confused with the official Disney brand, but it did not object to the use of employees in costumes based on characters from the franchise.
However, Lucasfilm did not confirm this information.
The owner of the Chilean company says that Lucasfilm does not have a trademark on the car wash
Jara’s lawyers also say he will seek to dismiss the lawsuit filed by Lucasfilm because the name of the car wash is different enough from the name of the film franchise to avoid confusion.
Moreover, it also claims that while Lucasfilm owns the trademark for Star Wars toys, furniture and beverages, it does not extend to the car wash.
“Of course, this process affects us. We are a small business, and we spend money on things that we did not budget for,” Jara said in an interview.
He also revealed that his young daughter came up with the name for the family car wash after visiting a Disney theme park in the United States that had a Star Wars area.
“We don’t make movies or sell their products or anything like that,” Jara insisted, but added that his car wash offers “stellar” service.
Source: Hot News
Lori Barajas is an accomplished journalist, known for her insightful and thought-provoking writing on economy. She currently works as a writer at 247 news reel. With a passion for understanding the economy, Lori’s writing delves deep into the financial issues that matter most, providing readers with a unique perspective on current events.