Fashion designer sues Lego over leather jacket worn by Queer Eye’s Antoni

Designer claims that Lego didn’t seek the designer’s authorisation to use his design, nor compensated him for his work

Lego is being sued for copyright infringement over an outfit worn by one of the mini-figures in the Queer Eye set that the company released last fall.

Designer James Concannon filed a complaint against the Danish toy production company in December 2021 claiming Lego “intentionally” copied the leather jacket design he created for Antoni Porowski in the Netflix series.

The Independent has contacted Lego for a comment.

Concannon alleges that one of the outfits included in the set for Porowski’s figurine copies “the unique placement, coordination, and arrangement of the individual artistic elements” on the jacket.

According to The Fashion Law, Concannon claims that Lego didn’t seek the designer’s authorisation to use his design, nor compensated him for his work.

Porowski wore the designer’s jacket in Queer Eye’s fourth season.

The lawsuit, which was filed in the Connecticut district court, further claims that Lego offered Concannon “a free Fab 5 Loft set – which retails for $99.99 (£73.10) – for [his] six-year-old son to play with, only to later revoke that offer, telling [him] that Lego does not give away its products for free.”

(US District Court of Connecticut)

Concannon also alleges that after sending a cease-and-desist letter to Lego, the company’s counsel responded by telling his attorney that if they brought a case against Lego, “it would be an ‘uphill battle’ [for them].”

Queer Eye’s sixth season debuted on Netflix on 31 December 2021.