Film production is ever-amicable over at camp Marvel/Disney, as a vicious ruckus over the character rights concerning the Ghost Rider franchise almost cripples the release of its newest incarnation – Spirit of Vengeance. Luckily (or perhaps unluckily, when considering how truly dreadful the last movie was), the court has ruled in the favour of Marvel, and the film is back on the cards.

The film is due out in February, with Nicolas Cage reprising his role as Johnny Blaze, a motorcycle-wielding superhero whose head is, quite literally, a flaming skull of rage. Comic book writer Gary Friedrich attempted to sue Marvel, claiming copyright over the character, which he radically revised while working for the company as a freelancer in the 1970s.  

However, New York federal judge Katherine Forrest stomped the fires of hope for Friedrich on Wednesday, confirming Marvel as the copyright holder and ruling the company was well within its rights to licence 2007's Ghost Rider and the forthcoming sequel. Forrest said Friedrich signed two contracts in the 1970s which, together, ceded all rights to his employer.

Either of those contractual transfers would be sufficient to resolve the question of ownership," she wrote in a judgement. "Together, they provide redundancy to the answer that leaves no doubt as to its correctness."

Though Marvel/Disney have certainly won the battle over this particular film production, Friedrich still has the option of taking the case to a higher court. Whether he is dispirited by this defeat remains to be seen.