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Elizabeth Banks sued over ‘Walk of Shame’ script

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“Walk of Shame” star Elizabeth Banks and the filmmakers behind the newly released comedy have hit a bump in the road: a lawsuit saying they cribbed the story from a writer’s screenplay.

On Wednesday, Dan Rosen (“The Last Supper,” “Freeloaders”) filed a complaint in federal court in California through his company Shame on You Productions alleging that “Walk of Shame” lifted ideas from his script “Darci’s Walk of Shame.”

According to the suit, Rosen sent the script to Banks through a mutual acquaintance in 2007, then met with the actress and her husband, movie producer Max Handelman, to discuss it.

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The suit says that while Banks and Handelman liked the idea of the script, they never got back to Rosen and did not return the script.

Among the alleged similarities between “Darci’s Walk of Shame” and “Walk of Shame” are the title, the big-city setting and the plot: Both stories follow a pretty thirtysomething blonde who breaks up with her boyfriend, commiserates with her girlfriends, gets drunk, has a one-night stand, wakes up the next morning at his place, dons her outfit from the previous night and embarks on a misadventure.

In addition to Banks and Handelman (who did not produce “Walk of Shame”), the suit names “Walk of Shame” writer-director Steven Brill, Focus World, Sidney Kimmel Entertainment, FilmDistrict and Lakeshore Entertainment.

In response to the lawsuit, a Lakeshore spokesperson told the Hollywood Reporter, “Lakeshore developed ‘Walk of Shame’ independently, prior to casting Elizabeth Banks. We believe this claim is meritless.”

Since its release May 2, “Walk of Shame” has met with poor reviews and grossed just $55,000 at the box office, though it did reach the No. 1 spot on iTunes.

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