(Reuters)
Photographer David LaChapelle can continue to develop his million-dollar copyright claim against pop star Rihanna after a New York judge green-lit the motion, the New York Post reported Friday.
Manhattan federal Judge Shira Scheindlin said the surrealist fashion photographer "successfully alleges" that the songstress, her record label and video director may have copied his provocative images for Rihanna's "S&M" video.
In a ruling released Thursday, Scheindlin cited the "hot-pink and white striped walls," "women wearing frizzy red wigs" and "black tape wrapped around a man" as elements that Rihanna may have copied from LaChapelle's work.
The song and accompanying clip draw comparisons between sadomasochism and the relationships that some celebrities have with the paparazzi.
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