The viral clips of Sylvanian families drinking, dealing drugs, arguing and cheating on their partners have become fan favourites on TikTok.
But the melodramatic vignettes, which include a mouse relapsing on ketamine and a hedgehog drink driving, could be a thing of the past.
The scenes posted under the username Sylvanian Drama on social media, feature storylines starring Sylvanian Families figures and have racked up more than three millions followers on TikTok and Instagram.
But now the mastermind behind the viral videos is under attack after the Japanese maker of the toys, Epoch Company, filed an infringement case in the US, claiming the videos have caused ‘irreparable injury’ to its reputation.
In response, the owner of the account, Thea von Engelbrechten, from Ireland, filed a counternotice claiming her works were ‘parody’.
The small velvet animal toys first launched in 1985 with characters including dogs, bears, foxes and penguins.
The plush toys live in mansions and houses filled with sumptuous furniture and gorgeous decor.
While they were originally marketed as children’s toys, the viral videos have significantly darker, more adult themes with skits captioned with ‘My marriage is falling apart’ and ‘Your daughter has been kidnapped’.
The viral clips of Sylvanian families drinking, dealing drugs, arguing and cheating on their partners have become fan favourites on TikTok but they could be taken down by a toy company
The small velvet animal toys first launched in 1985 with characters including dogs, bears, foxes and penguins
But now the mastermind behind the viral videos is under attack after the Japanese maker of the toys, Epoch Company, filed an infringement case in the US, claiming the videos have caused ‘irreparable injury’ to its reputation
The videos, posted on Instagram, YouTube, X, Facebook and TikTok have millions of views and the account has even partnered with luxury brands from Marc Jacobs, to Burberry, and Hilton for advertisements.
Court documents filed by Epoch with the southern district of New York on July 4, first reported by the BBC, accused Von Engelbrechten of infringing the company’s copyright without its permission, causing irreparable injury to its goodwill and reputation.
One stated that in an interview with Fohr, an influencer marketing company, Von Engelbrechten said her inspiration for the storylines came from ‘cringey TV shows and early 2000s comedy’.
But Epoch alleged that, even though the creator had changed things about the toys including dressing them in ‘different costumes’ and adding ‘fake eyelashes’, the advertising deals were a form of unfair competition because they featured the toys for commercial gain without the company’s permission.
Epoch attempted to take down the popular social media account before and briefly got it removed last year, but it was restored after Von Engelbrecht filed a counternotice.
The Daily Mail has approached Von Engelbrecht and Epoch Company for comment.
