Epic had the right idea when they introduced dance moves to Fortnite Battle Royale, and it was also a pretty good idea to use contemporary dance moves, especially with some of these moves having gone viral in the past. Unfortunately it seems that Epic’s decision to use these moves came without permission from their creators.
Previously it was reported that rapper 2 Milly had sued Fortnite for allegedly stealing his dance move. Actor Donald Faison had also expressed his displeasure at Epic using his “Poison” dance move in the game, and now it looks like actor Alfonso Ribeiro, known for his role as Carlton Banks in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, has sued Epic as well over his Carlton Dance.
As Polygon points out, it’s hard for Epic to deny that this move was inspired by the Carlton Dance as the emote used to activate the move is “fresh”, a nod to Ribeiro’s role on the series. What’s interesting is that this lawsuit is filed by the same company handling 2 Milly’s lawsuit, which also names Ribeiro.
The lawsuit claims that Epic is “exploiting African-American talent in particular in Fortnite by copying their dances and movements”. Epic has yet to officially comment on these lawsuits, except to say that they do not comment on ongoing litigation.