Court Throws Out 'Day After Tomorrow' Plagiarism Charge

A court in Cologne on Wednesday dismissed accusations that German-born director Roland Emmerich had plagiarized key elements of his big budget film "The Day after Tomorrow." The complaint had been filed by Harvard University professor Ubaldo DiBenedetto, who alleged that central plot elements of Emmerich's film are "substantially identical" to the plot of "Polar Day 9," a book he wrote in 1993 under the pseudonym Kyle Donner. DiBenedetto wanted to be named as co-creator of the film. However, the district court described DiBenedetto's accusation as "unfounded" and ruled that there were no similarities to be ascertained between the film and the book.