Dion sues ZeniMax over Fallout 4 ad
Singer-songwriter upset by hit song "The Wanderer" appearing in "repugnant" ad without proper consent
ZeniMax is facing legal trouble over some 2015 commercials for Fallout 4. As reported by The Wrap, singer-songwriter Dion DiMucci has filed suit alleging the company used his hit song "The Wanderer" in ads for the post-apocalyptic role-playing game without proper consent.
While the suit acknowledges that DiMucci--better known by his mononymous stage name Dion--had allowed UMG Recordings to license the song to ZeniMax for Fallout 4 ads, it also claims the singer had a right to prohibit use of the song. The suit says the Fallout 4 ad was objectionable because it "featured repeated homicides in a dark, dystopian landscape, where violence is glorified as sport. The killings and physical violence were not to protect innocent life, but instead were repugnant and morally indefensible images designed to appeal to young consumers."
One version of the ad has been embedded above. It is unclear if other, substantially different versions were also released. No version of the ad could be found on Bethesda Softworks' official YouTube channel at the time of this writing.
Had DiMucci been properly consulted before the ads run, the suit says the star would either have used his leverage to have ZeniMax change the commercials or sought a higher price to compensate for whatever damage his image would have taken from the association with "the immoral images in Defendant's scripts."
DiMucci is seeking more than $1 million in damages.