Popular Fortnite stream Turner “Tfue” Tenney has filed a lawsuit against esports and gaming multimedia giant FaZe Clan. The lawsuit was filed as an attempt to get Tfue out of his 3 year contract he had previously signed with FaZe. Tfue states in the lawsuit that FaZe is restricting his business opportunities and taking up to 80% of his earnings. The lawsuit states that the contract limits his ability to pursue his profession, which is against California law. The lawsuit also states that due to pressure put on by FaZe members he was pressured to drink under age, and perform stunts on video that lead to an injury. Lets break the lawsuit down and see what we can find out about each point.
FaZe taking 80% of Tfue’s earnings… This was a major part of the lawsuit majority of the gaming community grabbed on to. Tfue is estimated to be earning close to 10 million dollars a year, which is what Ninja estimated he earned in 2018. However, FaZe clan has disputed that – saying in total they have only collected $60,000 from Tfue since he joined the team last April. FaZe states they have collected $0 from Twitch revenue, YouTube revenue and that the $60,000 comes from 2 brand deals they brought to Tfue.
FaZe Clan’s response to today’s press article regarding Tfue: pic.twitter.com/eVdRVMnRpl
— FaZe Clan (@FaZeClan) May 20, 2019
FaZe clan later went on to state that yes, the contract does say that they could take 80% of the brand deal, but never have. They also state that the contracts were out-dated and have since sent Tfue and his team multiple renditions of the contract to try and make it beneficial for both parties. However, the new contracts have all been rejected or ignored.
A follow-up from FaZe Clan on today’s unfortunate situation. pic.twitter.com/qm6sK8v88B
— FaZe Clan (@FaZeClan) May 21, 2019
FaZe blindsided by lawsuit… A lot of the FaZe members have stated that they were blindsided by the lawsuit. They thought everything was in good standing with Tfue and that eventually a contract would be worked out. However, the in the lawsuit itself it states that FaZe was served papers back in September of 2018. FaZe was well aware that Tfue wanted out of his contract, I’d imagine they just didn’t think it would get this far.
FaZe pressuring underage drinking… Part of the lawsuit says that Tfue was pressured into underage drinking. This is wrong from both parties as Banks admits he knows that there was underage drinking at the FaZe house – where FaZe does business. Also wrong for Tfue because he has posted videos in the past of him drinking underage at other places than the FaZe house. DevinNash broke down Banks interview on DramaAlart where he admits to knowing about underage drinking at the FaZe house:
Banks also shared this video that Tfue has since removed of Tfue shotgunning 3 beers in 3 minutes. The video was filmed without any FaZe members present, besides Tfue. It also appears that the video was filmed in Tfue’s home area in Florida with friends from before FaZe clan.
Those are the main “Tfue v FaZe” lawsuit points. There are other points in the lawsuit where Tfue states FaZe pressured other gamers into lying about their age and so on. Those don’t really relate to the gaming / revenue / contract part of the lawsuit but major help tip the lawsuit in Tfue’s favor.
