It Sucks When This Happens To Your Movie

One of Omega-12's Creatures is in Alien Earth AND Predator: Bad Lands (or is it?)

This article is going to be a little more informal due to time constraints but I thought it was worth pointing out that this is something that can happen to filmmakers, sometimes intentionally, but most of the time by pure coincidence. However, I’d like to know from you: Should I be thinking about changing key elements of my movie “Escape From Planet Omega-12,” even though I’m already in full production?

Let’s start with some context. I’m a big fan of “Mr. H Reviews” YouTube channel and listen to his video while I work, all the time. He’s kean on the new “Alien Earth” series coming out from Hulu next month and has been breaking down and analizing any news that comes out about it. This morning, he put out a video about how the show will feature an Alien Plant and after watching it, I can’t help but feel an element of disapointment that, if you’re a regular follower of my work, you’ll know is almost exactly the same as something I created for the world of Omega-12.

Watch the video to see what I mean.

Now, I have had this detail about my animated movie up on my social media for years now? Do I think someone from this production has been looking at my work. I have a lot of friends in the industry so the possability is strong. Do I think they directly take from it for their own work? Most likely not. The truth is, we’re all drawing from the same well when it comes to sci-fi, fantasy, and horror. That’s just a fact of life. True originality is extreamly rare and even when we think we’re doing something that’s never been done before, we’re still pulling from the things that have influenced us all of our lives. That’s just a fact of life.

You’ve seen my sketches on social media.

And my paid supporters have seen my storyboards.

But the similaraties don’t stop there. Before today, I had seen that the upcoming Predator: Badlands movie also had killer vines. I didn’t pay much attention to this because it’s hardly a new concept.

Now, you know I'm deep in production on my animated sci-fi epic where our protagonist, Tara, finds herself navigating a truly savage alien world. Part of that world's ecosystem includes bizarre and dangerous flora. Without giving away too many spoilers, I’ll say that there's a particular alien plant in the Omega-12 ecosystem that is, shall we say, not purely herbivorous. It's a quick, terrifying detail designed to remind Tara that even the plant life on Omega-12 wants a piece of her.

The "Alien Earth" creature, the "D. Plumbicare" that Mr. H. reviews, also operates as a carnivorous plant that senses and traps prey. While the core concept is uncannily similar, my alien plant and its role are, of course, distinct to the world of Omega-12.

So, here's the burning question that hits every creator at some point: Should I be thinking about changing key elements of Escape From Planet Omega-12, even though I’m already in full production?

From my perspective, as someone knee-deep in the trenches of independent filmmaking, and understanding (as a layperson, not a lawyer, of course!) how copyright generally works, the answer leans towards no, not necessarily. The truth is, the "carnivorous plant" is a venerable and well-loved trope in speculative fiction. It's like finding two different stories about vampires or zombies, where the core concept is open territory; it's the unique expression and specifics that matter.

Consider the sheer volume of stories that have explored this very concept. Beyond the famously hungry Audrey II from Little Shop of Horrors, we've had the mobile, terrifying Triffids in John Wyndham's The Day of the Triffids (and its various adaptations). Japanese cinema gave us the plant kaiju Biollante in Godzilla vs. Biollante. Hollywood brought us the actively malevolent plant life in The Ruins and the more subtly silly plant-driven apocalypse in The Happening. Authors from H.G. Wells…

…to Arthur Conan Doyle to Jasper Fforde have dabbled in man-eating flora, and even cult classics like Attack of the Killer Tomatoes! or more obscure B-movies like The Woman Eater and From Hell It Came have played with the idea. In literature, figures like Arthur Conan Doyle and Jasper Fforde have added their own monstrous flora to the literary landscape, and TV shows like Doctor Who have introduced creatures like the Krynoid. Even video games like The Sims (with the Cowplant!) and Terraria feature these hungry botanicals. It's a well-trodden path that creators keep finding new twists for.

It’s not even the only similarity.

My script for Escape From Planet Omega-12 was copyrighted and registered with the Writers Guild of America (WGA) way back in 2018. This establishes a clear timeline of independent creation for my project, long before any details of these newer projects became public.

Ultimately, while creative coincidences are a fascinating and sometimes frustrating part of the artistic journey, the core idea is rarely the protected element. It's all about the unique way you bring that idea to life your specific designs, your characters, your plot, and your overarching vision.

But I'm genuinely curious about your take: Knowing all this, and considering that my story was created and copyrighted years ago, do you think I should continue on without changing a single thorny petal or slimy coil of my alien plant? Or do you think I might risk being accused of being a copycat, or even worse, face some legal trouble, even if it's unfounded? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!