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Rapper 50 Cent, whose real name is Curtis James Jackson III, is suing American film financier and Relativity Media CEO Ryan Kavanaugh. As reported by The Hollywood Reporter on April 25, the rapper filed the lawsuit on Thursday (April 24) in California federal court.
50 Cent is suing Kavanaugh for trademark infringement, false advertising, and unfair competition. The rapper claims he was not paid for acting in GenTV's inaugural film, Skillhouse. He also claims the streaming platform reportedly used his name illegally to promote the movie.
The media outlet reported that 50 Cent and his son shot scenes for the horror film and allegedly waited for a final agreement. However, the final deal supposedly never materialized. The rapper is seeking at least $5 million in damages from the lawsuit.
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"No final agreement was ever signed; nevertheless, Defendants have billed Jackson as the star and producer of the film," the lawsuit states.
Jonathan Loeb, 50 Cent's lawyer, stated that Kavanaugh and GenTV allegedly plan to use the film to compete with the rapper's other projects, and Jackson is strictly against it.
"[They] plan not only to steal Jackson's reputation and goodwill amongst his millions of fans to boost their own film, but also to use that film to unfairly compete with Jackson's other business ventures. Obviously, Jackson never would have agreed to allow his intellectual property to be used in such a manner," Loeb stated.
More details on the 50 Cent starter film, Skillhouse
GenTV's inaugural film, Skillhouse, is directed and written by Saw writer Josh Stolberg. It stars Neal McDonough, 50 Cent, Caitlin Carmichael, Leah Pipes, and content creators Bryce Hall and Hannah Stocking. The horror thriller is produced by 50 Cent, Kavanaugh, and Shane Valdez, the founder of REALM Agency.
According to a Maxim report dated August 9, 2024, Ryan Kavanaugh's GenTV and Shane Valdez's REALM Agency collaborated on the project. In a press release last year, Kavanaugh said they would use the customer and user data they have to market the film and drive audiences to the theaters.
"We believe that since we will have all of the customer and user data from the shorts, we have a one-on-one connection with the end-ticket buyer. We will be able to drive the audience into theaters in a whole new manner," Kavanaugh said.
Kavanaugh also stated that the collaboration between GenTV and the REALM Agency helped them create a full-fledged team to work with the film's editing, VFX, music, lighting, etc.
"I am able to do what I have never been able to do before: have an entire team working through the editing process to find the best way to approach not just the editing of the movie but every scene of the movie. Every scene is its own movie now, from the editing, to the FX, to the color lighting and music, and it’s just been awesome. The best creative experience I've had," Kavanaugh added.
According to Deadline's March 31 report, Skillhouse will be released in theaters on July 11, 2025.
