A U.S. appeals court ruled on Thursday, July 18, 2025, that Netflix made fair use of funeral footage in its 2020 docuseries ‘Tiger King’, siding with the streaming giant in a copyright dispute with videographer Timothy Sepi.
The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver, Colorado upheld the decision, reversing its own 2024 ruling that had initially favored Sepi. The court’s latest opinion concluded that Netflix’s use of the footage qualified as fair use under copyright law.
Case Background: The 66-Second Funeral Clip
The dispute centered on a 66-second clip from a funeral of a ‘Tiger King’ character. Sepi, the videographer who filmed the footage, sued Netflix in 2020, alleging the streamer failed to compensate him for its use in the hit docuseries.
Court Reverses 2024 Decision
In 2024, the same appeals court panel had ruled against Netflix, stating that the company did not transform or comment on Sepi’s footage. Chief Judge Jerome Holmes wrote at the time:
“Defendants do not appear to have a sufficiently compelling justification for their use. Defendants simply wished to use Mr. Sepi’s Funeral Video to convey a new meaning or message.”
However, in the 2025 decision, the court took a different stance. Judge Holmes, writing for the panel, stated:
“The difference between the purposes animating Defendants’ use of the excerpted material and Mr. Sepi’s use of the Funeral Video is significant.”
“The use of the Funeral Video clips is classic documentary-style borrowing.”
The court also noted that there was “no indication that Defendants gained materially from the commercial exploitation of the copyrighted material itself.”
What This Means for Fair Use in Documentaries
The ruling underscores the evolving interpretation of fair use in documentary filmmaking, particularly when incorporating pre-existing footage. The appeals court’s shift in perspective highlights the importance of context and transformative purpose in copyright disputes.
A Netflix representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment from TheWrap.
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