WCWA Promoter Sues WWE Over Bloodline Entrance Copyright

Nathaniel TathaNanandji, the promoter of the independent WCWA Wrestling promotion based in Arkansas, filed a federal lawsuit on December 30, 2025, accusing WWE, its parent company TKO Group Holdings, and video game developers 2K Games, 2K Sports, and Take-Two Interactive of copyright infringement. The 30-page complaint, lodged in the United States District Court for the Western District of Arkansas in Fayetteville, centers on an audiovisual entrance sequence TathaNanandji claims he created for WCWA's Tier 1 faction, which he alleges was copied for WWE's prominent Bloodline storyline and subsequent video games.

TathaNanandji, who handled creative direction, booking, staging, and production for WCWA, a promotion founded in Springdale, Arkansas, in 2012, states that he developed the sequence in April or August 2019. The ritualized display involves wrestlers forming a hierarchical lineup facing the camera, pausing briefly, raising arms in a staggered manner with a single finger extended, and holding a static pose to emphasize authority and unity. He describes it as a protected audiovisual work, not a single gesture, and notes its public debut in WCWA events and online videos around...