Gun Interactive Statement on Horror, Inc.
A statement from Gun Interactive on the recently filed legal matter by Horror, Inc., about Friday the 13th: The Game.
Ralph warned us… “It’s got a death curse.”
Unfortunately, the saga of Friday the 13th continues. As fans of this franchise know, Horror, Inc. has a history of rushing into lawsuits and losing. It spent five years, from 2016 through 2021, suing Victor Miller, the original screenwriter of Friday the 13th, and it lost, then lost again on appeal. And now Horror, Inc. is trying to run the same playbook against Gun, using the threat of a costly lawsuit to try to strong-arm the very partner that gave this franchise everything it had.
At its core, Horror, Inc.’s lawsuit comes down to a single accusation, that Gun did not pay all the royalties it owed on the game. Over the life of this game, Gun paid them more than $18 million in royalties. Our records show they were paid every dime they were owed. Horror, Inc.’s own representatives reviewed and approved the accountings Gun provided at every step. Only now, years later, after the game is dead, they are trying to squeeze another $4 million out of Gun through disputed accounting methodologies.
There is a bitter irony in Horror, Inc. accusing Gun of underpaying royalties on a game whose earnings Horror, Inc. itself choked off.
In 2015, Gun licensed the rights in Friday the 13th from Horror, Inc. and the other rights holders to build the game. Gun poured years of creative resources and energy and millions of dollars into developing the game. It found the loyal fan base you are all part of.
Then Victor Miller, the screenwriter who created the original Friday the 13th, served notice terminating his copyright, which the law entitled him to do. Miller made clear he never wanted to halt or kill the game. He wanted proper credit and compensation for what he created.
Rather than find a path forward, Horror, Inc. sued him to try and freeze him out. With the rights tied up in Horror, Inc.’s own lawsuit, the new content our fans were asking for had to stop. Horror, Inc. lost that case in October 2018, then lost its appeal in 2021. Even then, Gun wanted to partner with Horror, Inc. to remaster the game and give it a real second life. Instead of taking that path, Horror, Inc. let the license lapse, ending the game. It was pulled from storefronts and the servers went dark, even after Gun offered to keep paying to keep them running.
We built the game, supported it, and stood by the fans through all of it. None of what went wrong was Gun's doing. It flowed from Horror, Inc.’s decisions, one after another, until the rug was pulled out from under Gun and everyone who loved this game. And now, after all of that, Horror, Inc. has the nerve to claim Gun failed to pay it enough.
Our motivation in this partnership was always about bringing the best possible Friday the 13th experience to fans like us. Our only mistake was trying to work with partners whose entire motivation is purely financial, partners that would rather squeeze every last drop of blood from a stone than build a lasting relationship to make great content for the fans.
If you’ve played our game, you know, we’re fans just like all of you. And we’re saddened that these are the stewards of the franchise we all fell in love with.
Gun intends to fight this lawsuit. We will not be bullied by the threat of expensive litigation into paying Horror, Inc. a penny more than it was owed. We have been pushed around in this partnership more than is fair, and we have carried the burden in the public eye long enough. This time we are pushing back.
- Gun Interactive