Paramount, Disney Send Legal Notices to ByteDance Over Seedance 2.0 AI Copyright Clash

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The legal battle over artificial intelligence in Hollywood just hit a boiling point. Over the weekend of February 14, 2026, Paramount Skydance and The Walt Disney Company fired off formal cease-and-desist letters to ByteDance. The studios are livid about a new AI video tool called Seedance 2.0. They claim the TikTok owner used a “pirated library” of films and characters to train the system. Disney’s lawyers even called it a “virtual smash-and-grab” of their biggest intellectual properties.

On Saturday, February 14, Paramount’s head of intellectual property, Gabriel Miller, sent his letter directly to ByteDance CEO Liang Rubo. He named several “crown jewel” franchises that the AI is allegedly ripping off. The list includes Star Trek, South Park, SpongeBob SquarePants, and The Godfather. Paramount argues that the videos made by Seedance 2.0 are so good they are “often indistinguishable” from the real movies. They want the service stopped and all their content scrubbed from ByteDance's systems immediately.

The Motion Picture Association (MPA) joined the fight, too. MPA chief Charles Rivkin said that in just one day, Seedance 2.0 engaged in copyright theft on a “massive scale.” He noted that ByteDance launched the tool without any real safeguards to protect creators. This lack of control led to viral clips of characters like Darth Vader and Spider-Man appearing all over social media. Actors’ union SAG-AFTRA also backed the studios, saying the tool steals its members' voices and faces without consent or pay.

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In response, ByteDance told the BBC on Monday that it “respects intellectual property rights.” The company said it is now working on “stronger safeguards” to block the use of famous characters. They already paused a feature that let users upload photos of real people. However, the studios are not backing down. They want a guarantee that their movies won't be used as “clip art” for AI in the future. This fight marks a major showdown in the 2026 media landscape.