Viral dancer sues Roblox for allegedly profiting off her iconic Apple dance without permission

A dancer who went viral last year is suing Roblox after an emote of her most famous dance move was sold without permission.

Kelley Heyer gained online fame last summer thanks to her dance routine to the chorus of Charli XCX song Apple.

However, Heyer has now sued Roblox after one of its most popular experiences, Dress to Impress, started selling an emote of her dance without her permission.

According to a BBC report, Roblox did a deal with Charli XCX last year to include her likeness and music in a Dress to Impress concert.

However, because the dance move was created by Heyer instead of Charli XCX, her legal team argues that her permission was required to use her choreography as an emote.

Instead, while Heyer was reportedly in talks with Roblox to license the dance as an emote, Roblox allegedly added the dance to the game anyway without signing an agreement.

It’s claimed that Roblox made $123,000 from selling the emote, before it was taken offline.

“Kelley is an independent creator who should be compensated fairly for her work and we saw no other option than to file suit to prove that,” Heyer’s lawyer Miki Anzai said in a statement. “We remain willing and open to settle and hope to come to a peaceful agreement.”

Heyer’s Apple dance was added to Fortnite in December, but as she explained in a TikTok video at the time, Epic Games co-operated fully with her during the process.

“While I only interacted with them over email, the whole Fortnite team was really wonderful and super easy to work with,” she said.

“They reached out in August, and we signed a contract in October, and then they told be the dance would be released around Christmas time, but here it is two weeks early.”

She added: “As of right now, Fortnite is the only video game platform that has a signed contract to license the dance from me.”

In a statement to the BBC, a Roblox spokesperson said: “As a platform powered by a community of creators, Roblox takes the protection of intellectual property very seriously and is committed to protecting intellectual property rights of independent developers and creators to brands and artists both on and off the platform. Roblox is confident in its position and the propriety of its dealings in this matter and looks forward to responding in court.”