THE creators of the comic book “Harsh Realm” – on which the new TV series by “X-Files” creator Chris Carter is based – filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit yesterday because they don’t get on-screen credit.
Creators James Hudnall and Andrew Paquette are seeking more than $5 million in damages from Harris Publications, which sold the concept of the show – the adventures of a man in a virtual world – under a contract that took most of the rights to “Harsh Realm” away from them.
“Credit has a lot to do with your advancement in Hollywood,” Hudnall told The Post. “Harris cut me out of the picture. They didn’t allow me to have anything to do with the [Carter/Fox] deal. They got a credit for themselves, but they wouldn’t give me any credit.”
Harris Publishing officials did not return phone calls.
“We have not seen the complaint, so we cannot comment at this time,” a Fox spokesman said.
“Harsh Realm” is a new series produced by Carter and Fox about a soldier trapped in a military-themed virtual reality world. It was originally an underground comic book set in a virtual fantasy world inhabited by dragons and elves.
Carter has said that the TV show is so different from the comic books that there really is no longer any resemblance to the original comic.
Hudnall, 42, a comic-book writer, conceived and wrote “Harsh Realm” in 1988 and got New York-based Harris Publications to publish the six-book series – drawn by artist Paquette – in 1992.
Carter and Fox bought the idea for “Harsh Realm” from Harris in 1996 and Hudnall and Paquette have received royalties from the deal.
The two now want credit for their idea.
On the pilot episode of “Harsh Realm,” the show had a credit that only offered “special thanks to Harris Publishing” and left out Hudnall and Paquette. The two also say that Carter is taking all the credit for creating “Harsh Realm.”