Duluth business suing film company over use of bag in Indiana Jones movie

DULUTH, Minn. (FOX 21) - When Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny hit movie theaters this summer, fans welcomed the return of the fictional character.

But the eccentric archeologist's newest adventure on the silver screen is also prompting a legal battle in the real world.

A lawsuit filed by Frost River Trading Company in Duluth against Lucasfilm and Filson, a competing outdoor supply company, claims Lucasfilm used Frost River's Geologist Pack with the leather logo removed in the film without their permission.

Frost River owner Christian Benson also claims Lucasfilm and Filson made a 60-second commercial, featuring clips from the film, including a shot of their Geologist Pack, for a sweepstakes to win an expedition to Morocco outfitted by their competitor.

"It wasn't about the fact that the bag was used. It's about the fact that it was modified and then all of a sudden showed up in a different spot that it shouldn't have been," Frost River owner Christian Benson told FOX 9.

Lucasfilm and Filson have filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, saying the shot of the unlabeled Geologist Pack in the commercial is only up for a fraction of a second, making it unidentifiable to an ordinary consumer.

Frost River has filed an opposition to the motion to dismiss.

"Our real purpose of bringing the suit in this case was to set the record straight," said Benson.

Benson says some Indy fans are finding the Geologist Pack anyway and ordering it from Frost River's website.

Regardless of what happens with the court case, he hopes to get his own Hollywood ending.

"We're selling a bunch of these bags. I'm glad for that. I'd love to sell more as we go on and whatever arrangements happen, we'll see what happens," said Benson.