‘Indiana Jones 5' Sparks Trademark Suit Over Hero’s Backpack

A leather-bound knapsack used by the titular character in Lucasfilm Ltd.'s summer action flick “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” triggered a trademark lawsuit from an outdoor gear maker claiming its product was advertised in the film without permission.

The complaint filed by the Superior Tech LLC—which does business as Frost River—in San Francisco federal court alleged Lucasfilm engaged in a national marketing campaign with a competitor, C.C. Filson Co., featuring a bag that actually was Frost River’s popular “Geologist Pack.”

The scheme is an example of “reverse passing off,” where a competitor removes a product’s trademarks to pass it off as its own, the complaint alleged.

“Indeed, Lucasfilm and Filson were so brazen in their marketing and disregard for Frost River’s rights to its intellectual property, that they used clips of Indiana Jones wearing Frost River’s Geologist Pack on Filson’s own website,” the complaint said.

The fifth installment of the Indiana Jones franchise, starring Harrison Ford as the rugged, world-traveling archaeologist, was released late last month to disappointing box office numbers.

Characters in “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” are seen carrying an altered version of Frost River’s “Geologist Pack” bag during a sequence in the film, the company’s complaint said.

Source: Court documents

Jones and the other main characters are seen carrying the Geologist Pack over a 12-minute sequence while traveling through Sicily, the complaint said.

Frost River, which makes handcrafted backpacks, duffels, and shoulder bags, alleged that a stamped leather patch and red taffeta were removed from the pack seen in the movie “in an effort to obscure” Frost River’s brand.

Lucasfilm partnered with Filson, which makes similar leather bags, for a co-branding campaign to promote the film and Filson’s products. The campaign included a sweepstakes challenge with a grand prize of a National Geographic expedition to Morocco, including Filson products to outfit.

Filson’s website for the campaign includes a one minute ad video that features clips of Jones and another character wearing the Geologist Pack and its “Simple Book Pack,” according to the complaint.

“A consumer visiting Filson’s website is led to believe, by implication, that the bags featured in the Indiana Jones 5 film were manufactured by Filson and are genuine Filson products,” the complaint said.

Lucasfilm and Filson didn’t respond to requests for comment. Frost River declined to provide additional comment.

Early Sullivan Wright Gizer & McRae LLP represent Frost River.

The case is Superior Tech LLC v. C.C Filson Co., N.D. Cal., No. 3:23-cv-03581, 7/19/23.