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Pepperdine University sued Netflix and Warner Bros. over the fictional Los Angeles Waves basketball team in *Running Point*, alleging that its name and branding echoed Pepperdine’s Waves athletics identity and could suggest a connection to the university. The district court dismissed the case on March 31, 2026, at the pleading stage. Pepperdine appealed, but the available docket record does not establish what happened after July 10, 2026.
What Pepperdine said the show borrowed
Pepperdine filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California on February 20, 2025, naming Netflix and Warner Bros. Entertainment. Kaling International was added as a defendant in the amended complaint. Pepperdine alleged trademark infringement and related claims tied to the fictional Los Angeles Waves basketball team.
The university pointed to the Waves name, blue-and-orange colors, logo and lettering treatment, Los Angeles setting, athletic clothing, and the number 37. Pepperdine argued that the combination appropriated its Waves identity and could imply a relationship between the school and the series. These were the university’s allegations, not findings that infringement occurred. The district court described the marks and colors as similar, not identical, when assessing the pleaded claims and exhibits.
In its February 20, 2025 announcement, Pepperdine senior vice president and chief marketing officer Sean Burnett said the university believed the show had misappropriated its name, colors, hometown, and founding year, and that court intervention was necessary after efforts to resolve its concerns. That statement represents Pepperdine’s position.
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Did Pepperdine stop the show from being released?
No. Pepperdine’s original complaint sought to prevent the series’ release, among other relief. On February 26, 2025, the court denied the university’s request for a temporary restraining order, finding no likelihood of success on the merits at that preliminary stage. *Running Point* began streaming on Netflix the following day, February 27, 2025.
The restraining-order decision was an early request for emergency relief, not the later ruling that dismissed the case. The court addressed the amended complaint on the merits of the pleaded claims more than a year later.
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Why the district court dismissed the case
On March 31, 2026, the court granted the defendants’ motion to dismiss. It treated *Running Point* as an expressive work and applied the framework from *Rogers v. Grimaldi*. The order described the test as asking whether a challenged use “(1) is not artistically relevant to the work or (2) explicitly misleads consumers as to the source of the content of the work.”
The court acknowledged that the Waves mark appeared throughout the show and that the pleaded materials showed similarities. But it concluded that the allegations did not establish that the mark identified the source of the series or explicitly misled viewers into believing Pepperdine produced or sponsored it. In other words, the court distinguished branding used within a fictional story from branding that tells viewers who made or backed the television series.
This was a ruling on the pleadings, not a factual finding after a trial about whether every alleged similarity existed or caused confusion. Pepperdine elected to stand on its first amended complaint, and judgment was entered after the dismissal.
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What is known about Pepperdine’s appeal?
Pepperdine appealed to the Ninth Circuit in case 26-3131. The indexed docket record last retrieved on July 10, 2026, listed the opening brief as due September 2 and the appellees’ brief as due October 2 after an extension. Because that docket snapshot predates both deadlines, it does not confirm whether the briefs were filed, whether the schedule later changed, or whether the appeal has since been decided. No later appellate outcome can be established from that record.
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Case timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| February 20, 2025 | Pepperdine filed suit against Netflix and Warner Bros.; Kaling International was later added in the amended complaint. |
| February 26, 2025 | The district court denied Pepperdine’s request for a temporary restraining order. |
| February 27, 2025 | *Running Point* became available on Netflix. |
| March 31, 2026 | The district court dismissed the amended claims under its application of the *Rogers* framework. |
| After dismissal | Pepperdine appealed to the Ninth Circuit as case 26-3131; the available docket snapshot is dated July 10, 2026. |
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