"Midnight in Paris" and the nine-word quote from "Requiem for a Nun" Copyright lawsuit

'Midnight in Paris' poster

Sony Pictures was sued for using lines from a novel book by William Faulkner, and it won, according to Hollywood Reporter.

Faulkner’s filing said that the use of quote and his name in the film may cause confusion between him and his works. And he asked for “damages, disgorgement of profits, costs and attorney fees.”

But the judge said that “"Qualitative importance to society of a nine-word quote is not the same as qualitative importance to the originating work as a whole.”

In a movie “Midnight of the Paris”, the main character (Owen Wilson) says “The past is not dead! Actually, it's not even past. You know who said that? Faulkner. And he was right. And I met him, too. I ran into him at a dinner party.” And in “Requiem for a Nun” Faulkner wrote, "The past is never dead. It’s not even past."

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