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Superman fans are familiar with the concept of a never-ending battle — it was part of the opening narration for the 1950s Adventures of Superman television series (he “fights a never-ending battle, for truth, justice, and the American way,” according to that monologue), and used as an advertising slogan for the character’s comic books in the 1990s. Now, it seems, Superman has become embroiled in a new never-ending battle… this time over the release of his new movie internationally.

You might remember that attorney Marc Toberoff filed a lawsuit on behalf of the estate of Superman co-creator Joe Shuster in January, challenging Warner Bros’ right to release James Gunn’s upcoming Superman movie in any country that follows British copyright law, alleging that rights to Superman in those countries actually reverted to the estates of his co-creators in 2017 because of the way British copyright law works. (Simply, British copyright law states that rights revert to authors a certain number of years after their death.)

You might also remember that the court dismissed the case in April, on the grounds that it did not have jurisdiction over a case involving international law.

Well, it turns out that Toberoff wasn’t deterred by the ruling. According to legal journalist Eriq Gardner, Toberoff has filed the case a second time, this time changing tacks only slightly — whereas the first filing was with a federal court, now he’s filed with New York State Courts. This second attempt may be more successful; according to Gardner, a NY State Supreme Court judge has asked Warner Bros. to submit opposition papers to the filing by May 23, and appear in court on June 4 to argue its case.

Does this mean that the New York State ruling won’t match the federal ruling, and claim a lack of jurisdiction? It’s entirely up in the air right now, and the federal ruling came as a result of Warner Bros. making the argument… but with Superman’s planned international release just six weeks away, this feels like something that has the potential to upend a lot of planning for DC Studios and Warner Bros. if it doesn’t go away quickly.

Never-ending, indeed…

Superman flies into US theaters July 11.

James Gunn's Superman is flying into theaters soon enough, and Popverse has all you need to prepare. Refreshing your cinematic memory with our Superman movie watch order, learn what we know about the upcoming Superman movie, Superman's S-Shield through the ages, and read about what DC is doing ahead of their flagship hero's triumphant return.