Author Sues CW for Intercepting 'Game'

Zap2It.com | September 21, 2006

Tia Mowry and Pooch Hall on 'The Game'

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Staci Robinson also wants to stop the show from airing

New shows and yes, even a new lawsuit come with the territory of launching a new network.

Author Staci Robinson is suing The CW, its owners and some producers for $40 million for allegedly stealing the concept of her unpublished novel to create the sitcom "The Game," according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The writer claims that in 2001, she had interviewed for a job as a writers assistant at Kelsey Grammer's Gramnet Prods. when she gave a manuscript of her novel to "Game" executive producer Mara Brock Akil. The suit, filed Sept. 14, alleges that the series copies her premise and the characters in the book.

She names the CW and its owners, CBS and Warner Bros., Akil and Gramnet as defendants. Besides the hefty monetary damages, Robinson is seeking a temporary restraining order to keep the network from premiering the show on Sunday, Oct. 1.

Both the written and filmed versions center on a woman who is devoted to an NFL player, but wants to pursue her professional schooling. The show stars Tia Mowry as Melanie Barnett, who gives up Johns Hopkins Medical School in favor of a local school when her boyfriend Derwin Davis (Pooch Hall) is chosen as the new third-string wide receiver for the San Diego Sabers. Soon, however, she gets embroiled in the complicated life of being a player's significant other. Brittany Daniel, Coby Bell, Hosea Chanchez and Wendy Raquel Robinson also star.