Aşk-ı Memnu Screenwriters Hail Victory in Romanian Copycat Lawsuit

A Romanian court has ruled that Antena 1 must cease all broadcasts of its drama Fructul Oprit, which Turkish screenwriters Ece Yörenç and Melek Gençoğlu allege was an unauthorized copy of their series Aşk-ı Memnu (Forbidden Love).

Aşk-ı Memnu was adapted by Yörenç and Gençoğlu from the novel of the same name by Halit Ziya Uşaklıgil in 2008. It ran for two seasons on Kanal 2. In  2017, Antena 1 in Romania commissioned its own version of the Uşaklıgil novel, titled Fructul Oprit. Yörenç and Gençoğlu filed suit early last year, alleging that Fructul Oprit featured storylines and characters from Aşk-ı Memnu that had not appeared in the book.

According to a statement from the screenwriters, Antena 1 has been ordered to cease all linear and on-demand broadcasts of the series. It has also been prevented from licensing the show to third parties.