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Tom Clancy’s Widow Expands Suit, Says She Owns Rights To John Clark Character Too

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Tom Clancy’s widow Alexandra Clancy is suing the legendary novelists’ estate to secure exclusive financial rights to the character John Clark, according to the Associated Press.

The lawsuit is an expansion of her existing litigation, started in 2017, which covers Clancy’s more famous character Jack Ryan. The AP story said she also seeks the rights to several Clancy books. Clancy characters are financial entities in and of themselves, according to legal experts, the proceeds from which are divided among a number of entities including Clancy’s first wife, Wanda King, as well as his four previous children.

The action is relevant because, according to Variety, there are two movies in development by Paramount Pictures that feature John Clark as the main character. They are based on Clancy’s books Rainbow Six and Without Remorse. Michael B. Jordan, who starred in Black Panther, has been slated for the role. Willem Dafoe and Liev Schreiber have played Clark in previous films, but the Paramount projects mark the first starring role for the character.

Michael B. Jordan to play Tom Clancy character John Clark in new film series (EXCLUSIVE) https://t.co/rGmxW5leX0 pic.twitter.com/pTESRNq5Cr

— Variety (@Variety) September 20, 2018

While the potential windfall the estate would see from the upcoming projects is unknown, at the time of Clancy’s death in 2013 at 66, the LA Times estimated that Clancy-based movies had grossed $786 million.

Clancy left an estate worth $83 million, according to the Wall Street Journal, of which Alexandra was the sole beneficiary of two-thirds. A 12% stake in the Baltimore Orioles, a 535-acre Maryland estate and a collection of rare military items were among the estate’s assets.

The legal issues started when Alexandra contested her tax bill of $6 million, saying that other estate beneficiaries should pay, and have been ongoing since.

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