Games Meet Hollywood: Entertainment Deals in the Games Industry

When: Monday, April 7, 2025, 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Where: Room 3.1, Centre for Commercial Law Studies, Queen Mary University of London, 67-69 Lincolns Inn Fields, London WC2A 3JB

QMIPRI hosted the exploring the intersection between the games industry and traditional entertainment. As collaboration between these sectors becomes more frequent and commercially significant, games’ developers and publishers increasingly encounter the complex and sometimes opaque customs of Hollywood dealmaking.

This seminar offered practical, hands-on guidance for navigating key legal and contractual considerations when engaging talent from the traditional entertainment industry in the interactive entertainment sector. Topics included:

• Termination rights and realistic remedies when working with celebrity talent

• Union obligations, including SAG-AFTRA compliance

• The role of PR agents and other industry stakeholders in standard deals

• Strategies for avoiding common pitfalls and achieving success in cross-industry partnerships

Particular attention will be given to legal and commercial practices surrounding the hiring of celebrities for voice-over work, in-game performances, downloadable content, and marketing services.

We look forward to your participation.

 

Speaker

Dorian Slater Thomas practices in the Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz PC’s Interactive Entertainment Group and Advertising, Marketing & Public Relations Group, advising prominent agencies, brands, platforms, developers, publishers, and creative talent on a wide range of transactional matters. Recognised in Best Lawyers in America’s 2024–2025 “Ones to Watch” editions for Entertainment and Sports Law and Intellectual Property Law, he has also been named on the National Law Journal’s 2022 Trailblazers list, Variety’s 2022 Legal Impact Report “Up Next” list, and The Legal 500’s “Rising Star” in Advertising & Marketing for 2021. He advises top gaming and technology companies, negotiating and drafting development, licensing, SaaS, and operational agreements, as well as various advertising and creative services contracts. An active member of his firm’s Diversity Committee and co-chair of the LGBTQ+ Affinity Group, he is admitted in California and New York. Jason earned his J.D. from Tulane University Law School and his B.A. from the University of Colorado at Boulder.