Quote Originally Posted by IdolKnights View Post

Is 10% enough to keep you safe in the world of parody films?
I would amplify and modify Lee's comment.

10% might be defendable in a court of law, but you'll be broke by the time you get there to defend it. As Lee said, anyone can sue for anything, and in the US, there's really nothing to deter someone from filing a frivilous lawsuit. My understanding is that in the UK and many other countries, the plaintiff is responsible for the defendant's costs if the plaintiff loses, and that's a very strong deterrent.

So if I were doing a parody, I would probably be much, much more conservative... the bottom line is, if you parody a well known franchise or asset, such as Dukes of Hazzard or Brokeback Mountain, and use a somewhat similar plotline or characters, you're asking for the legal department at the original studio to get up in arms. They would probably send a cease-and-desist first, but if you told them "fuck you", they might well decide to file suit if they believe that you're using the goodwill of their franchise as the principal means of attracting buyers. And the costs of defending the suit will be way, way greater than the income from the video.

It all boils down to your comfort level with various levels of risk.