'Hangover II' lawsuit 'radical', says Warner Bros

Warner Bros has responded to an attempt by Mike Tyson's tattoo artist to block the release of their comedy sequel The Hangover Part II.

S. Victor Whitmill filed legal papers last month requesting that the film be banned on grounds of copyright infringement.

Whitmill insists that he owns the artistic rights to Tyson's famous facial art, and that by replicating it in a scene featuring Ed Helms, the producers are now legally liable.

Warner Bros has now reacted to Whitmill's claims, and are urging the courts to reject his request.

"The very 'copyrightability' of tattoos is a novel issue," the company's legal brief reads. "There is no legal precedent for the Plaintiff's radical claim that he is entitled, under the Copyright Act, to control the use of a tattoo that he created on the face of another human being."

The company claims that the case should be dismissed on a number of grounds, citing fair use of parody, the ubiquitous nature of the tattoo, and the fact that Tyson himself appears in the film as reasons why a ban should not be enforced.

Warner Bros is also insisting that unless Whitmill personally puts up a $100 million bond, their financial losses from delaying the film's launch would be "unrecoverable".

The court's decision is expected later this week ahead of the expected release of The Hangover Part II on May 26.

> The Hangover Part II: Watch a behind-the-scenes video

Check out the trailer for The Hangover Part II below: