Why not? Tattoos are eligible for copyright protection on the same criteria as other creative works. The creator and maker of Mike Tyson’s well known face tattoo, Victor Whitmill, was smart enough to register Tyson’s face tattoo with the U.S. Copyright Office on 2 October 2003.

Now it so happens that in the sequel to the famous (and to my taste very entertaining) Hollywood movie The Hangover, wherein Tyson also plays a role, one of the main characters Ed Helm (aka Dr. Faggot) is provided with the same tattoo as Tyson.

Already before the release of Hangover II Whitmill learned that his tattoo was predominantly featured without his permission. Whitmill apparently could not appreciate this and just before the movies release asked the U.S. District Court Judge Catherine D. Perry for a preliminary injunction. The request was denied. Since then, the movie has become the highest-grossing R-rated comedy ever, worth about $ 500 million.

Despite the failed preliminary injunction Whitmill’s lawyers saw some dollar signs when Judge Perry said that Whitmill did have a good case in main proceedings. Apparently Warner Brother’s lawyers thought the same thing and recently came to an amicable settlement with the tattooist.

Source: TheHollywoodReporter