‘Fresh Prince’ Star Alfonso Ribeiro Files Lawsuit Against Epic Games’ ‘Fortnite’ Over Use Of Carlton Dance

Alfonso Ribeiro’s “Carlton Dance” from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air has reached legendary status since he first began joyfully swinging those arms and movin’ those legs to Tom Jones’s classic song “It’s Not Unusual”. Many have playfully performed the Carlton Dance at weddings, proms and other festivities, but it seems like the creators of the popular video game Fortnite have taken it too far.

Ribeiro filed a lawsuit against Epic Games’ Fortnite Battle Royale for copying the Carlton Dance. The suit claims that Epic have “capitalized on Alfonso Ribeiro’s celebrity and popularity by selling The Dance as an in-game purchase in Fortnite under the name ‘Fresh,’ which players can buy to customize their avatars for use in the game.”

The suit claims that “Epic get consent to use, display, reproduce, sell, or create a derivate work based upon The Dance or Ribiero’s likeness.” The suit also adds that “Epic has unfairly profited from exploiting Ribeiro’s protected creative expression and likeness and celebrity without his consent or authorization.”

This is not the first suit filed against Epic’s Fortnite. Rapper 2 Milly filed a suit against Epic earlier this month, claiming that Fortnite had a dance called “Swipe It” which was copying his dance called the “Milly Rock.” 2 Milly said that Epic didn’t ask for permission to use the dance and never received compensation.