Malcolm Gladwell

The courts find that the similarities between Gary's idea and Zootopia didn't look like copyright infringement.

And the case is dismissed before the courts ever get to the question of whether Disney actually used Goldman's pitch.

So the Goldmans give up the fight.

Now, there are a million things to say here.

The first is that it isn't surprising that Goldman loses his copyright case against Disney.

It's almost impossible, under current case law, for a writer to win a case like this against a studio.

In one analysis, two Los Angeles lawyers looked at over 50 copyright infringement cases writers brought against Hollywood studios, and in every case, the plaintiff lost.

The law basically says you have to show that your work was copied word for word.

And of course, you can steal someone's idea without copying it word for word.

I could go on and on about this, but I won't.

Because what matters is what happens next.

Exactly.

That's the question.

What happens in the sequel to Zootopia?

Everyone has a theory.

Why do you think I dragged my daughter to see Zootopia 2?

Because I have a theory.

Gary Goldman has a theory.

The team of movie buffs and literary analysts we put on the case have a theory.

You will have a theory too once you finish listening.