The ‘Dreams’ Skater Is Threatening To Sue An Aussie Brand For Ripping Off His Image
The "Dreams Vintage T-Shirt" was on sale for $36.95.
Nathan Apodaca, AKA the viral star who catapulted himself into the stratosphere when he released a TikTok of his favourite pasttime — floating down the street, drinking cranberry juice, and lip-synching to Fleetwood Mac — is everywhere at the moment. So it was only a matter of time before some brand was going to try and hop onto his bandwagon.
After all, since he blew up, Apodaca has been courted by a whole host of multi-national companies, most notably Ocean Spray themselves, who supplied him with a branded car. But now, an attempt by an Australian clothing brand Culture Kings to make some Apodaca cash has blown up in their face.
See, Culture Kings have been selling streetwear with Apodaca’s smiling face on it. The only thing is, they reportedly didn’t ask his permission first.
As noted by TMZ and locally reported by Cam Wilson of Business Insider Australia, Apodaca and his team are threatening to sue Culture Kings unless the company pulls the garment which features a photograph belonging to Apodaca — taken from the viral skateboarding video.
TMZ obtained the takedown notice issued by Apodaca’s lawyers, Jeffrey R. Klein of Fisher & Wolfe LLP, after they discovered the brand was selling a “Dreams Vintage T-Shirt” for $36.95.
As Wilson notes, the item of clothing has already been pulled from the brand’s store.
Apodaca has been selling his own merch, and has apparently pulled in more than US$30,000 in sales.