Sylvester Stallone knocked out a lawsuit

Sylvester Stallone knocked out the author who claimed to be the real writer behind The Expendables.

U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff in Manhattan on Monday dismissed the lawsuit filed last October by Marcus Webb, who said the movie was "strikingly similar and in some places identical" to his own work, "The Cordoba Caper." He also said that it is similar from the opening sequence to the plot to the character of the villain.

Webb had sought damages for alleged copyright infringement, and a ban on infringement in any sequel by Stallone; co-author David Callaham; Nu Image Films, which produced the movie; and Lions Gate Entertainment Corp, which distributed the movie in the United States.

Stallone's lawyers pointed out that Webb wrote his script after Callaham had already written three drafts of the screenplay and that Webb had no information that Stallone or Callaham had ever seen Cordoba.

In oral argument, Rakoff focused on whether the screenplays were "strikingly similar."

The judge grant a motion to dismiss because the alleged similarities were merely ideas and that the overall concept and feel of the two works was vastly different.

"The Expendables" was released on August 13, 2010. Stars included in the film were Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Bruce Willis, and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

A sequel, "The Expendables 2," is scheduled for release on August 17.