Korean pop stars threaten legal action after their song featured in 'The Interview' 'without permission'

Rappers Yoon Mi-Rae and Tiger JK’s track ‘Pay Day’ has ended up in the controversial film

Rapper Yoon Mi-Rae whose song with Tiger JK was featured in 'The Interview' (Getty Images)

Two Korean pop stars are threatening to take legal action after they say one of their songs was used in the controversial Hollywood film The Interview without their permission.

Rappers Yoon Mi-Rae and Tiger JK were in talks to feature their track ‘Pay Day’ in the film but they claim they had not reached any agreement. However, they have discovered that around 15 to 20 seconds of the song has now appeared in the film.

FeelGhoodMusic, the management company for the two stars, is considering taking legal action against DFSB, the agency handling the discussions with Sony Pictures, a spokesman told The Hollywood Reporter.

In a statement from FeelGhoodMusic on Friday, the agency said, "There were initial discussions about including the song in the film score, but negotiations stopped so we were under the impression that it wasn't happening."

"It was only after the film was released that we became aware of the song's unauthorized use, without taking the appropriate and necessary steps to complete a contract with the artists."

The two rappers were “hesitant” about their music appearing in the film because of the sensitivity towards the film in Korea.

The Interview stars James Franco and Seth Rogan as two American journalists who are enlisted by the CIA to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

The film has been the subject of much controversy due to its portrayal of North Korea and its leader, with the secretive state describing the movie as illegal, dishonest and reactionary.

The intrigue surrounding The Interview deepened after Sony Pictures’ was the victim of a cyber-attack in which emails from the company’s executives were leaked online. The film company initially pulled its release of the film due to the hack attack but later reinstated it.

North Korea vehemently denied being behind the cyber-attacks and demanded a joint investigation to find those responsible.

The Interview was screened at independent cinemas across the US this week and is now available to watch on YouTube.

The Independent has approached Sony Pictures for comment.