Walt Disney Co hunts for person responsible for leaking Ant-Man script

The entertainment giant was granted subpoenas Monday ordering Alphabet's Google, Reddit to turn over any data they have that would identify the person or persons who posted the script on their sites

Walt Disney Co. is hunting for whoever is responsible for distributing the then unreleased script of its latest Marvel blockbuster Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
 

The entertainment giant was granted subpoenas Monday ordering Alphabet Inc.’s Google and Reddit to turn over any data they have that would identify the person or persons who posted the script on their sites. The companies must turn over the information by March 24 at the San Francisco office of Disney’s lawyers, Latham & Watkins LLP, according to the subpoenas.

The leaked script reportedly appeared on a Reddit forum in late January, about three weeks before the film was first released in Europe and Asia. The third installment in the Ant-Man franchise has gone on to gross $448 million worldwide. The poster used Google Docs to distribute the script, according to the subpoena issued to Google.

The subpoenas were issued at the request of Matthew Slatoff, vice president for global security and content protection at Marvel Studios LLC, which Disney purchased in 2009.

“Reddit is committed to protecting our users’ privacy,” the company said in an emailed statement. “We have rigorous processes in place to assess legal requests and object when appropriate.” The company declined to elaborate.

Google didn’t have an immediate comment.

The cases are: In re: DMCA section 512(h) subpoena to Google LLC, 3:23-mc-80067. In re DMCA Section 512(h) Subpoena to Reddit, Inc., 3:23-mc-80068. Both cases are in the US District Court, Northern District of California (San Francisco).