Courts
Comedian Learnmore Jonasi was sued for his comedic translation of the chant in “Circle of Life”
A federal judge in Los Angeles has dismissed a $27 million defamation lawsuit brought against the comedian Learnmore Jonasi by Lebohang Morake, the South African singer and composer professionally known as Lebo M. Morake’s Zulu chant opens “Circle of Life” in Disney’s The Lion King.
The ruling, issued Friday, threw out the suit that Morake filed in March. Bryan Sullivan, a lawyer for Jonasi, called the decision a vindication of his client’s right to free speech.
“We have always believed this was a frivolous lawsuit in violation of our client’s First Amendment rights,” Sullivan tells Rolling Stone. He says the dismissal came after his side filed a motion for sanctions against Morake. Jonasi will now seek attorneys’ fees under California’s anti-SLAPP statute, which is designed to deter lawsuits aimed at silencing public speech, he says.
