Modern Warfare Operator Results in Lawsuit for Activision

In December of 2019, Season One of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare introduced Mara, a Coalition Operator portrayed by Alex Zedra. Serving as the face of Modern Warfare until its next Season, Mara was quite popular among fans due to her feminine take on the military style found throughout the game. This popularity coincided with recognition for the actress behind the Operator's voice and appearance, resulting in a seemingly positive experience for everyone involved.

As one of many Operators in the ever-growing roster, Mara is a fully developed character - complete with a backstory and multiple outfits.

Venezuelan national turned CIA asset at 15; provided intel for US to launch in-country covert ops against AQ sleeper cells. Volunteered for US SOF training. Conducted clandestine ops for CIA until invited to WARCOM in 2017.

It was until over a year later, in February of 2021, that Clayton Haugen filed a copyright infringement lawsuit in a Texas court, alleging that Activision-Blizzard and Infinity Ward intentionally modeled Mara after his own character, Cade Janus, from a short story he had written called November Renaissance.

In a twenty-two page document entered into the lawsuit, the plaintiff claims that Mara's identity is an intentional ripoff of his original character. Going as far to say that the Modern Warfare developer's intent was malicious and willful.

In addition to hiring the same talent, they also hired the same makeup professional who had prepared the talent for Haugen’s Cade Janus Photographs. They instructed the makeup professional to prepare the talent exactly as she had done for Haugen’s Cade Janus Photographs. They instructed her to style the talent’s hair exactly as she had done for Haugen’s Cade Janus Photographs, even using the same hair piece extension.

It's unclear which direction this case will go, although fans of the Call of Duty title have expressed their frustration with these events, stating that both of the characters are solely based on Alex Zedra herself.

When prompted for a comment by Polygon, neither Activision-Blizzard nor Clayton Haugen accepted.

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