Warner Bros. Was Sued By Tattoo Artist After It Copied Mike Tyson's Famous Tattoo In Hangover II

The entertainment company was actually sued by tattoo artist S. Victor Whitmill - who gave Tyson his world-famous tribal tattoo - back in 2011.

Whitmill claimed the tattoo Ed Helms’ character got in the film infringed the copyrighted tattoo he needled into Tyson’s face, and that Warner Bros. never contacted him to get his permission to use the design. 

While the case was settled during an ‘all-day’ mediation, terms of the settlement weren’t revealed.

Whitmill’s attorney Geoff Gerber said at the time: “Warner Bros. and Mr. Whitmill have amicably resolved their dispute. No other information will be provided.”

Whitmill’s lawyer’s official complaint filing read: “When Mr. Whitmill created the Original Tattoo, Mr Tyson agreed that Mr. Whitmill would own the artwork and thus, the copyright in the Original Tattoo.

“Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. — without attempting to contact Mr. Whitmill, obtain his permission, or credit his creation — has copied Mr. Whitmill’s Original Tattoo and placed it on the face of another actor … This unauthorised exploitation of the Original Tattoo constitutes copyright infringement.”

Unfortunate face tatt aside, Helms’ character Stu had a famously hard time of it in the boozy trilogy, even yanking his own front tooth out with a set of pliers in the first movie. 

Helms previously revealed that his tooth was actually missing when he shot the flick, although a rusty pair of pliers weren’t the IRL culprit. 

He added: "We started to do different tests with prosthetics and blacking it out and nothing worked.

"I wasn't eager to take out my implant because my mouth is healthy, but I talked to my dentist and he was like, 'Yeah we can do it!' My dentist was really into it."