Paddington copyright owners sue Spitting Image after podcast sketch

Paddington vs Paddington: the battle of the bears. That might sound like an odd twist in the movie franchise, but it is instead the legal case we'll see as Paddington movie producer StudioCanal and Paddington's rightsholders sues Spitting Image producer Avalon for its depiction of the beloved bear in a recent episode.

In the YouTube sketch, we see a podcast hosted by Prince Harry and an alleged Paddington Bear. Paddington looks like he's had a few rough years in the sketch, and he doesn't hold back on swearing, referencing drug use, and basically not being the childhood hero he is in the main movies.

As first reported by Deadline, the claimants are represented by law firm Edwin Coe and have filed a High Court complaint citing copyright and design right concerns. It comes months after the Spitting Image sketch aired, and while the reason for the filing has not been explicitly stated, considering who the claimants are suing it doesn't take a lot of detective work to figure this one out.