Dua Lipa is suing a leading electronics giant for $15 million: 5 other celebrities who took global brands to court

Singer Dua Lipa is back to making headlines but this time it's not about her romantic life, endless vacations or new release. The 30-year-old has filed a $15 million lawsuit against Samsung, alleging that the electronics manufacturer used her likeness to sell TVs without paying her and without permission. As per the complaint filed on Friday, Samsung used the 'Levitating' singer's image on the cardboard packaging of its TVs since the beginning of 2025. When she became aware of it, she demanded that the company stop using her image. The suit alleges that the company was "dismissive and callous" and refused the request. While Dua has sent headlines running for her lawsuit, she's not the first celebrity to have taken a global brand to court. Here are five celebrities who sued brands for millions and won:

In 2012, Topshop began selling a £22 sleeveless T-shirt bearing a recognisable image of Rihanna derived from a photograph taken of her during a video shoot for her Talk That Talk album. The image was taken by an independent photographer who as the owner of the copyright, licensed the image to Topshop. In 2013, Rihanna and two of her corporate licensing companies launched legal action for £3.3 M, alleging that the use of her image for fashion clothing was not licensed and that people buying the T-shirt would think she had endorsed it. In a two-minute judgment Mr Justice Birss ruled that Topshop's sale of the T-shirt was an act of "passing off."

In a 2009 Sports Illustrated ad, a grocery store chain Dominick’s Finer Foods used an image of Michael Jordan without authorisation. The ad featured the name 'Michael Jordan' along with the athlete's jersey number on a red Chicago Bulls jersey. It also included a $2.00 off coupon. In the complaint Jordan claimed that Dominick's had misappropriated his name and persona in violation of the Illinois Right of Publicity Act (IRPA). Moreover, he claimed that by equating Jordan with a discounted steak, the chain had reduced his endorsement value. In the end, Jordan received $8.9 million in damages, close to the $10 million he had sought.

In July 2021, Marvel actress Scarlett Johansson filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court, claiming that Disney sacrificed 'Black Widow''s box office potential to grow its Disney+ streaming service. In her complaint, the actress said the movie had been guaranteed an exclusive theatrical release when she signed her deal. But with the film releasing simultaneously on the streaming platform, the contract had been breached. Moreover, the move cost her the compensation she would have received from the box office revenue. While the two parties settled the matter out of court, sources told Deadline that Johansson received compensation that exceeded $40 million.

In 1985, Ford Motor Company and its advertising agency were advertising the Ford Lincoln Mercury with a series of nineteen 30-60 second TV commercials in 'The Yuppie Campaign'. Different popular songs from the seventies were sung in each commercial. The agency tried to get the "original people" to sing them, but due to failure to do so, it had the songs sung by "sound alikes." One of Midler's songs 'Do You Want To Dance' was also done by a sound-alike. Midler sued Ford for misappropriating her voice and identity and the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that the company had misappropriated her identity. The Academy Award-winning actress and singer was later awarded $400,000 in damages in 1989.

Interestingly, this isn't the first time Samsung has used a celebrity's fame to sell its products. In 1993, Vanna White, the host of the game show "Wheel of Fortune" filed a lawsuit against Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. and Samsung Electronics America Inc. The complaint stated that the company's advertising campaign in 1989 and 1990 had Vanna White look-alikes, deceiving the public that she endorsed the brand's products. A Los Angeles jury awarded White $403,000 in damages after finding that 17 of Samsung's advertisements caused "blurred commercials" which combined the Wheel of Fortune look with a Samsung product.