Hilter, a small dog and a Michael Jackson hologram. Hologram USA CEO Alki David has faced some strange lawsuits before, but this might beat them all.
The feud between David and Pulse Evolution Chairman John Textor over the Michael Jackson hologram at this year’s Billboard Music Awards heated up on Monday after Alki sought to dismiss a restraining order filed by Textor over David’s Instagram photos.
Textor claimed that a photo of Hitler and another of David pointing a firearm at a Pomeranian constituted a personal threat against him. The Hitler photo features David giving Hitler the finger. David tagged Textor on the picture.
Also read: Michael Jackson Hologram Case Escalates to Restraining Order Over Hitler Picture
But David insists the photos weren’t threats and had nothing to do with the litigation.
“I’ve never physically threatened anyone,” he told TheWrap on Thursday. “I’m not that kind of person.”
He claims the Hitler photo was intended as a comment on events in the Middle East. “I only tagged [Textor]. Nobody saw it, he has like three followers,” he said.
And the photo of the gun pointed at the dog?
“It’s a BB gun, it’s not a real firearm,” he said, describing the picture as a joke.
In legal documents, David claimed that Textor only petitioned the court for a restraining order so he could use it as leverage in the “high stakes patent litigation pending between the parties in other states and in other courts.”
David told TheWrap, “Textor chose the wrong obsessive, compulsive guy to mess with.”
Also read: FilmOn X Founder Alki David Sued for Alleged Battery and Fraud
Textor and David have filed lawsuits against each another over the Jackson hologram. David ‘s lawsuit claims the hologram infringed on patented technology exclusively licensed by Hologram USA. Textor’s suit claims David is a “charlatan,” alleging he had no involvement in the development of the Jackson hologram, and falsely laid claim to it in media interviews.