A Breakdown of The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical Lawsuit

The Netflix series Bridgerton became a cultural phenomenon when it debuted in late 2020. Less than a month into the series, Abigail Barlow posed the question "What if Bridgerton were a musical?" on TikTok, and sang a song based on dialogue from the show. It went viral, prompting Barlow to post more musical content inspired by Bridgerton.

Barlow then collaborated with composer Emily Bear to write 15 short songs based on the series. Their album, The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical, became its own phenomenon. The album became a hit, and won the 2021 Grammy award for Best Musical Theater Album. Throughout the project's rise, Netflix appeared supportive.

But Netflix has its limits. They asked Barlow and Bear not to stage live events that would compete with Netflix's live events for Bridgerton. Then Barlow and Bear did just that, holding a concert at the Kennedy Center on July 26. So Netflix is suing over intellectual property rights. It's one thing to watch a fandom for your show grow organically on TikTok, but quite another when those fans are charging $149 for a concert ticket and refused to purchase a license to do so. A second concert in London has been cancelled due to the lawsuit. Read a breakdown of what happened to The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical, and what it might mean for fan-created content at Smithsonian. 

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