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Associate Josh Tran wrote in the LA Lawyer’s May/June 2026 issue about how immersive, venue-based adaptations of familiar film and TV franchises are emerging as a major new revenue stream. But they also create unsettled legal questions about whether these experiences are merely new forms of exhibition or instead constitute derivative audiovisual works. Using the example of The Wizard of Oz at the Sphere, a spatial reimagining that adds sensory effects and, in some instances, AI-generated imagery, the article explains how added expressive elements may affect copyright classification, chain-of-title and rights grants (especially for legacy IP), talent approval rights, and guild reuse and residual obligations. It also argues that immersive entertainment may evolve into its own distribution “window,” requiring new approaches to licensing, compensation, and participation structures as studios and immersive venues increasingly co-develop and premiere spatial-format experiences.
Key Takeaways:
- Classification drives everything: If an immersive experience is treated as exhibition, existing grants may suffice; if treated as a derivative work, studios may need fresh rights and clearances.
- New authorship blurs the line: Added scenes, visuals, performances, or other creative expansions—especially beyond mere reformatting—strengthen the argument that the immersive product is transformative and potentially derivative.
- AI adds complexity, not clarity: AI-generated additions may be uncopyrightable absent sufficient human authorship, complicating ownership and protection strategies even as the underlying IP remains protected.
- Legacy deals are vulnerable: Older agreements often contemplated theatrical/broadcast/streaming, not spatial, venue-based adaptations, creating leverage for underlying rightsholders in renegotiations.
- “AR/VR rights” may not cover it: Even where contracts include AR/VR or “interactive” rights, immersive installations are often physical-space experiences, so categorization and drafting matter.
- Talent + guild issues may be triggered: New material can implicate consultation/approval provisions and raise WGA/SAG-AFTRA questions on reuse, residuals, and compensation for new recordings or repurposed performances.
- Potential new distribution window: As immersive venues premiere original or early-release spatial versions, studios may need to treat immersive as a distinct window with its own licensing economics, bonuses, and participation models.
Read the full article here.
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