After Dredging Up Notorious Sibling Rivalry, Olivia de Havilland Loses Feud Case

After Dredging Up Notorious Sibling Rivalry, Olivia de Havilland Loses Feud Case

Olivia de Havilland may have co-starred in the most notorious sibling rivalry in Hollywood history, ..

Olivia de Havilland may have co-starred in the most notorious sibling rivalry in Hollywood history, but even the 101-year-old actress has her limits for how that reportedly acrimonious relationship is depicted.

Last summer, the Gone With the Wind actress filed a lawsuit against FX and Ryan Murphys production company regarding her portrayal in Feud: Bette and Joan, claiming that the “FX series puts words in the mouth of Miss de Havilland which are inaccurate and contrary to the reputation she has built over an 80-year professional life, specifically refusing to engage in gossip mongering about other actors in order to generate media attention for herself.”

When attorneys for de Havilland and FX appeared at a California Court of Appeal hearing last week, Variety reported that “a key issue” discussed in court by both sides was the usage of the word “bitch” that Feuds de Havilland, played by Catherine Zeta-Jones, used to describe her sister Joan Fontaine.

In defense of the usage, FXs lawyer “cited on-the-record comments that de Havilland has made referring to Fontaine as a dragon lady, ” according to Variety. “Judge Halim Dhanidina, one of three judges on the panel, asked de Havillands attorney, Is there a substantial difference between calling someone a bitch and calling her a dragon lady? drawing laughter. De Havillands attorney replied, Yes, there is, your honor, adding, In my household, if you say the word bitch, you get your mouth washed out. ”

De Havilland has previously explained her complaint about the Feud profanity, saying, “This kind of vulgarity is not language that I use.”

Per a Variety report last year, FXs attorneys responded to the claim by “pointing to outtake reels from several classic films, available on YouTube, in which the actress says, Oh Christ, God damn it, and son of a bitch after flubbing her lines. They also referenced a book in which de Havilland is quoted telling a director, I dont play bitches. They make me unhappy. ”

On Monday, however, “a California appeals court has ruled that Olivia de Havillands lawsuit against Ryan Murphy and FX should have been tossed because its precluded by the First Amendment,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.

De Havilland also contested her inclusion in the series full stop.

“Miss de Havilland was not asked by FX for permission to use her name and identity and was not compensated for such use,” de Havillands attorneys said their initial statement.

The court concluded Monday that de Havilland does not have “the legal right to control, dictate, approve, disapprove, or veto the creators portrayal of actual people,” according to Deadline. The judges further ruled that Feuds portrayal of de Havilland “is not highly offensive to a reasonable person as a matter of law.”

Get Vanity Fairs HWD NewsletterSign up for essential industry and award news from Hollywood.Julie MillerJulie Miller is a Senior Hollywood writer for Vanity Fairs website.

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