M. Night Shyamalan and Apple are being sued for $81 million over alleged copyright regarding the television series Servant.

Created by Tony Basgallop, Servant premiered on Apple TV+ in November 2019. The psychological horror series ran for four seasons, with the conclusion premiering in March 2023. Shyamalan served as the showrunner for Servant and as an executive producer.

Why are M. Night Shyamalan and Apple being sued over Servant?

Per Variety, Shyamalan and Apple are now being sued for $81 million by Francesca Gregorini, an Italian-born director who alleges the series stole “key elements” from her 2013 movie The Truth About Emanuel.

“Her attorney, Patrick Arenz, showed jurors clips of both projects during his opening statement on Tuesday in federal court in Riverside, Calif. He argued that both depict a delusional mother who cares for a doll as though it is a real baby, and a nanny who is complicit in the delusion,” Variety’s article notes.

Arenx told the jury, “This is a simple case. There would be no Servant without Emanuel.”

The defense’s attorney, Brittany Amadi, meanwhile argued that development on Servant began before The Truth About Emanuel was ever released.

“Ms. Gregorini is seeking a windfall here,” Amadi said. “She’s seeking $81 million for work she didn’t do. The truth is the creators of ‘Servant’ do not owe anything to Ms. Gregorini.”

Amadi further argued that Servant “is a supernatural thriller,” while The Truth About Emanuel is “an emotional coming-of-age drama.” She also noted that the aforementioned dolls aren’t something that Gregorini invented and, rather, exist in real life “as therapeutic aids to help patients deal with grief.”

Gregorini originally attempted to sue over the matter in January 2020. A federal judge threw the case out a few months after that; however, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals revived the case in 2022. Shyamalan and other creatives involved with the show are expected to testify during the case.

“Judge Sunshine Sykes denied Apple’s motion for summary judgment in November, ordering that the suit would have to be settled by a jury,” the article notes.

The trial is expected to last about two weeks.