DeLorean takes ‘Back to the Future’ owners to court over lost royalties

DeLorean’s new owners claim they are owed five per cent of the revenue generated by toy and clothing sales from the Back to the Future franchise – nearly 40 years after the film’s release.

The DeLorean which played a starring role in the Back to the Future film franchise is at the centre of a legal battle in the US, with the defunct car-maker’s new owners alleging it has not been paid the royalties it is owed. 

The Los Angeles Times reports the current owner of the DeLorean Motor Company trademark has filed a lawsuit against NBCUniversal – the parent company of Universal Pictures, which owns the rights to Back to the Future.

DeLorean claims it has a right to five per cent of the revenue generated by merchandising and commercial agreements related to Back to the Future – such as toys, posters, lunchboxes and clothing – due to a 1989 agreement between the car-maker’s original founder, John DeLorean, and Universal Studios.

According to the LA Times, NBCUniversal has denied such a deal was arranged.

In Back to the Future, Emmett ‘Doc’ Brown (played by Christopher Lloyd) builds a time machine out of a DMC DeLorean, which subsequently transports Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) to various points in time. 

The three Back to the Future films – released in 1985, 1989 and 1990 respectively – were a box office hit, reportedly taking in more than $US388 million ($AU580 million) combined.

The success of the movie franchise provided a financial boost to Universal Studios, but it also turned the DMC DeLorean into a cult classic – despite the coupe going out of production three years before the first film was released.

DeLorean Motor Company produced the DMC DeLorean in Belfast, Northern Ireland, from 1981 until it declared bankruptcy in 1982, following a lack of sales – and the US Government charging John DeLorean with drug trafficking.

In 1997, the car-maker’s remaining stock was purchased by Texas-based UK businessman Stephen Wynne. The left-over items were subsequently distributed through his own business, also called the DeLorean Motor Company.

Mr Wynn’s company has subsequently traded under the DeLorean name and has been involved in prior legal disputes regarding the car-maker’s original rights.

In 2014, John DeLorean’s widow, Sally Baldwin, sued the Wynne-owned company for misuse of trademarks which she alleged had not been purchased after the original car-maker went bust.

The lawsuit resulted in Ms Baldwin being paid an undisclosed amount in exchange for the Texas-based DeLorean Motor Company acquiring the rights to use the name, trademarks and logos.

It also included provisions which allowed Mr Wynne’s DeLorean to benefit from royalties generated by Back to the Future, which was clarified when Ms Baldwin attempted to sue the reborn car-maker in 2018.

In May 2022, DeLorean revealed the Alpha5, an electric car which it claims will go into production – although when and if it does remains to be seen.

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