Kangana Ranaut’s upcoming film Queen 2 has landed in legal trouble after Phantom Studios filed a ₹250 crore lawsuit against JioStar, alleging the sequel was developed without authorisation, NDTV reported.
According to the report, Phantom Studios, which owns 50% of the intellectual property rights to the 2014 hit Queen, has exclusive rights to produce sequels. The studio claims it has never approved any sequel, adaptation or derivative work based on the film.
The lawsuit has been filed before the Bombay High Court after what Phantom described as repeated communication and settlement discussions with the parties involved over the alleged infringement.
A source familiar with the matter told Mid-Day that Phantom pursued legal action only after multiple attempts to resolve the issue. The source claimed the studio had issued a public notice and repeatedly informed filmmaker Vikas Bahl and JioStar about its objections before filing the case.
Another source said Phantom decided to move forward with the lawsuit after learning that Queen 2 had completed filming.
The sequel reunites Kangana Ranaut with director Vikas Bahl, who also directed the original Queen. Production began in early 2026 and wrapped only a few days ago. Kangana recently shared a behind-the-scenes photograph on her Instagram Stories showing her feeding a slice of cake to Bahl to mark the completion of filming.
Queen was originally produced by Phantom Films, founded by Vikas Bahl, Anurag Kashyap, Vikramaditya Motwane and Madhu Mantena. The film won the National Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi and became a major milestone in Kangana’s career, earning more than ₹100 crore at the box office and establishing her as a bankable star.
Following allegations against Bahl during the #MeToo movement, differences emerged among the founders, leading to the dissolution of Phantom Films in 2019. Mantena later revived the banner as Phantom Studios in 2022 with producer Sheetal Talwar. The studio most recently produced Loveyapa, directed by Advait Chandan and starring Junaid Khan and Khushi Kapoor.
