Netflix Escapes ‘Tiger King’ Suit as Clips Deemed Work-for-Hire

Netflix thwarted a cameraman’s copyright claims because he filmed the clips used in its “Tiger King” docuseries as part of his job, an Oklahoma federal court ruled Wednesday.

Timothy Sepi’s arguments about the nature of the clips directly contradicted his own 2016 testimony in another proceeding involving Joseph Maldonado-Passage—known professionally and in the show as as Joe Exotic—the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma said.

The court excluded Sepi’s 2021 testimony under the “sham affidavit doctrine,” concluding that he failed to provide a rational reason for why he lied in 2016. Without that testimony, there was no ...