This comes as a result of the automaker’s use of a few clips showing Godzilla in a recent commercial for the Odyssey minivan. In the TV spot, the monster from the depths of the ocean appears alongside rock band artist Judas Priest to demo the Odyssey’s split screen on-board video entertainment system.
The loud heavy metal guitar and pyrotechnic explosions were meant to show younger male customers that minivans can be cool as well as spacious. But this plan seems to have backfired.
Toho filed the suit on Feb. 2 in Los Angeles federal district court and is seeking an injunction against Honda’s (brief) use of Godzilla, said Junichi Tamaki, a Toho spokesman in Tokyo. “We took a legal action because Godzilla was used without authorization in the Odyssey commercial. It is an infringement of copyright,” Tamaki said.
This isn't the first time the legal guardians of the gigantic lizard have gone to the court, as the team has wiped out countless infringers, including fast-food chains, toymakers, publishers, wineries or rock bands, just like all those cardboard Japanese cities in the movies.
According to Automotive News, a spokesman from Honda has not commented on the upcoming litigation, though he did say that the commercial in question has not been suspended.
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