Comedian faces £27m lawsuit for Lion King joke
Source: thetimes.com
- Comedian Jim Jefferies is being sued for £27 million by a South African firm over a joke about The Lion King.
- The lawsuit claims his 2018 stand-up remark wrongly implied the company stole the film's iconic opening sequence.
- Jefferies calls the case "ludicrous" and vows to fight it, raising free speech concerns in comedy.
A South African firm called Motherland is suing Australian comedian Jim Jefferies for £27 million, alleging a joke he made in his 2018 Netflix special damaged their reputation. Jefferies quipped that Motherland's logo resembled The Lion King's famous dawn sequence, suggesting they copied Disney. The case highlights tensions between comedy free speech and defamation laws, especially across borders, and matters because it could chill humour targeting businesses.