You may recall that Fox and Marvel Comics sued Sony and Revolution Pictures back in June over alleged similarities between Fox/Marvel's "X-Men" franchise and Sony/Revolution's "Zoom." You may also recall that Fox's grounds for the suit were a bit pathetic and that there was some speculation that the real motivation for the lawsuit was the fact that Sony had scheduled "Zoom" for release just a few weeks before "X-Men 3." What Fox really wanted, the speculation continued, was simply to pressure Sony into moving its film to a later date.

Well, Fox and Marvel have dropped their lawsuit after the parties resolved their dispute "amicably." And coincidentally enough, Fox has also pushed back "Zoom" to an August 2006 release date, two months after "X-Men 3" hits theaters. Naturally, the former defendants deny that the lawsuit had anything to do with this change. According to Revolution, the studio simply opted to move the film to a less-crowded date.

I don't think there's anything quite as heartwarming as watching rich people use our nation's legal system as little more than a means to gaining the upper hand in a non-legal dispute. James Gandolfini would be proud.

[Yahoo! News] Fox, Marvel drop lawsuit over 'Zoom'

Look, kids! A frivolous lawsuit:

Twentieth Century Fox and comic book publisher Marvel Enterprises on Tuesday said they sued Sony Pictures and Revolution Studios to thwart the release of "Zoom's Academy," a film they say infringes on their popular "X-Men" feature films.

Both films feature children with special powers feared by the government and shunned by society, who are taught to harness and develop their abilities in a special school, said Fox in a statement.

Later, Warner Bros. announced that it will sue New Line, claiming that "The Wedding Crashers" infringes upon "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" because both films feature actors, props, and dialogue.

[Yahoo! News] Fox, Marvel say Sony stole 'X-Men' ideas