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Shkreli Countersues RZA Over Wu-Tang 'Shaolin' Rights, Alleging Duplicate Sale

Shkreli asks the court to declare he still owns half the album's copyrights despite the government's 2021 sale to PleasrDAO.

Overview

  • In a Feb. 2 filing, Martin Shkreli named RZA (Robert Diggs) and producer Cilvaringz (Tarik Azzougarh) and accused them of improperly reselling rights to Once Upon a Time in Shaolin.
  • Shkreli claims his 2015 purchase split physical artifacts from copyrights, granting him 50% immediately with the remaining 50% to transfer in 2103.
  • Prosecutors sold the album to PleasrDAO in 2021 for about $4 million, and the collective later paid $750,000 for additional rights, according to the coverage.
  • PleasrDAO sued Shkreli in June 2024 alleging he kept or copied the work after forfeiture, and a judge recently allowed the case to advance on a trade‑secret theory.
  • PleasrDAO’s lawyer called the counterclaims a distraction and predicted dismissal, while Shkreli also seeks a ruling that the album does not qualify as a trade secret.