Screenwriter Sues Paramount, BET & Will Packer Over 'What Men Want'

Source: Albert L. Ortega / Getty

Screenwriter Accuses Paramount of Copyright Infringement Over What Men Want

A screenwriter by the name of Joe Carlini has filed a lawsuit against Paramount, BET, Will Packer, and a majority of the screenwriters for What Men Want. According to reports from TMZ, he is alleging that some ideas from the 2019 film were stolen from a script he wrote and shopped around a few years prior.

In his lawsuit, Carlini is claiming that after completing his screenplay titled What the F Is He Thinking? back in 2015, he met with representatives for a few production companies–including The Weinstein Company–about getting his movie produced. The screenwriter alleges that he even spoke with a few actors (including James Franco, Chris Pratt, and King Bach) about starring in his project, but nothing ended up materializing from these interactions.

Joe Carlini says that he became suspicious of What Men Want after noticing some similarities shared between his script and the film starring Taraji P. Henson. In each of these screenplays, both main characters wish they could understand men better, both of them fall and hit their heads after partying, and both wake up in the hospital with the ability to hear men’s thoughts. He goes on to claim that both leads wind up losing their power after hitting their head, as well.

When he was in the process of trying to get his movie made, Carlini wanted to include athletes in What the F Is He Thinking? and was even allegedly in talks with the NFL’s Terrell Owens and Cordarrelle Patterson. Coincidentally, What Men Want ended up having cameos by some athletes including Shaquille O’Neal, Grant Hill, and Lisa Leslie.

Now, Joe Carlini is suing Paramount, BET, Will Packer, and more people involved with What Men Want for copyright infringement. In the lawsuit, he’s seeking a portion of the $72 million grossed by the film when it was released in February.