‘Baby Driver’s Soundtrack Leads to a Lawsuit Over Inclusion of T. Rex Song ‘Debora’
“Baby Driver” has earned acclaim for its playlist-ready soundtrack, but not everyone’s bobbing their head. The inclusion of T. Rex’s “Debora” has gotten Edgar Wright’s car-chase thriller in legal trouble, as Rolan Feld — who owns the copyright to the song and whose father Marc Bolan was in the band — has filed a copyright-infringement complaint alleging that the filmmakers “failed to obtain — or even seek” his permission.
“In the six weeks since Feld brought this infringement to Defendant Sony’s attention, Defendants have done little more than point fingers at one another — and they have neither apologized nor offered to pay Feld a reasonable license fee,” according to the suit. Feld’s father was the band’s frontman until he died in a car accident in 1977.
“Baby Driver” relies heavily on its carefully curated soundtrack, with chase sequences often synced to individual songs; “Debora” is among the film’s most important songs, not least because of its connection to a major character. At press time, Ansel Elgort was seen speeding away from a courthouse with several Hollywood executives in the back of his red Subaru (read: not really). Read more about the suit at TheWrap.
