Fortnite accused of ripping off Winnie the Pooh
A viral tweet claims that Epic Games ripped off an old episode of Winnie the Pooh, inspiring its legendary Default Dance.
12th Sep 2023 14:02
Epic Games | Walt Disney Television Animation
Fortnite accused of ripping off Winnie the Pooh
A viral tweet claims that Epic Games ripped off an old episode of Winnie the Pooh, inspiring its legendary Default Dance.
12th Sep 2023 14:02
Epic Games | Walt Disney Television Animation
Six years after Epic Games launched Fortnite's battle royale mode, we've come a long way from the early days of grabbing a burger in Tomato Town. While some might accuse the game of running out of ideas, crossover with the likes of Khaby Lame and Ahsoka Tano would suggest otherwise.
Still, with the thousands of emotes, Back Blings, and skins out there, there's likely to be some crossover. Think about all the times The Simpsons has "predicted" the future - it's simply because it's had so many episodes over the years. Now, Fortnite is being accused of stealing its iconic Default Dance... again
Fortnite accused of stealing the Default Dance
Over on Twitter, one gamer pointed out the shocking similarities between a dance from Winnie the Pooh's Tigger and the Deafault Dance. Apart from missing the arm fold at the end, we're inclined to agree the Tigger dance looks a lot like the Default Dance.
Doing some digging, the scene comes from My Friends Tigger & Pooh. As the CGI series ran from 2008 to 2010, it comes long before Fortnite and only adds to the idea it was swiped by Epic. In the comments, someone pointed to the episode "Darby the Plant Sitter" if you want to check it out.
Others have reminded us that the Default Dance seemingly originated in the 2006 Scrubs episode called "My Half-Acre" and was performed by Turk actor, Donald Faison. Either way, everything comes full circle, and there's something quite hilarious about watching Tigger pulling out the Default Dance.
Fornnite has been accused of stealing emotes
Fortnite isn't without its fair share of controversy when it comes to emotes and skins, with a number of cases leading to them being removed due to the threat of court cases. The most famous is Fresh Prince of Bel-Air's Alfonso Ribeiro, who tried to have the "Carlton Dance" removed.
Elsewhere, Russell Horning (the Backpack Kid) tried to sue over his "Flossing" dance, while Terrence "2 Milly" Ferguson went after the "Milly Rock" emote for being used without his permission. Judges have largely sided with Fortnite, admitting that the likes of Ribeiro haven't copyrighted the dance moves.
Even the Default Dance was caught in the crosshairs, with Faison telling fans that if they wanted to see his iconic "Poison" dance, "You can play Fortnite, because they jacked that sh*t." So, Fortnite didn't steal from Winnie the Pooh, Winnie stole from Scrubs. Ah, the circle of life.
About The Author
Tom Chapman
Tom is Trending News Editor at GGRecon, with an NCTJ qualification in Broadcast Journalism and over seven years of experience writing about film, gaming, and television. With bylines at IGN, Digital Spy, Den of Geek, and more, Tom’s love of horror means he's well-versed in all things Resident Evil, with aspirations to be the next Chris Redfield.
