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Animation Creator Butch Hartman Accused of Plagiarizing Attack on Titan Fan Artist
posted on by Kim Morrissy
American animation creator Butch Hartman, who is best known for his work on The Fairly OddParents and Danny Phantom, has been facing accusations on social media of plagiarizing a fan artist after he posted a commissioned drawing of Attack on Titan character Mikasa Ackermann on Sunday.
MIKASA ACKERMAN. To order a commission click: https://t.co/C7MMkj0fI4 pic.twitter.com/ikkB6c5c2g
— Butch Hartman (@realhartman) February 20, 2021
The illustration bears strong similarities with a drawing posted by Japanese fan artist Otton in 2018:
ちょっと前に描いたミカサ pic.twitter.com/D6GIMWLpjD
— オットン (@028ton) April 2, 2018
On Sunday, Otton posted a link to Hartman's tweet and wrote in English: "I have received a report that my fan art has been plagiarized. I checked the tweets and found many similarities to my work. In addition, there was a possibility that money was being made, so I am urgently alerting you to this." They then stated that they have not given permission for others to use their image, and said, "If you see any products using the same artwork in the future, please do not purchase them." They posted the same message in Japanese.
Hartman reportedly has a history of heavily referencing other artists' work without credit in his commissions. A viral tweet circulating in July compared his drawing of the female Ranma from Ranma ½ to a piece of artwork from the anime.
Sources: Butch Hartman's Twitter account, Otton's Twitter account
