March 13, 2026, 12:30 PM ·
The owner of Sesame Street wants out of its license agreement with United Parks & Resorts. Sesame Workshop filed a lawsuit in U.S. federal court yesterday asking for a judge to terminate its 2017 license deal with SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment, which is now operating as United Parks. The case is Sesame Workshop v. Seaworld Parks & Entertainment, Inc. – Case No. 1:26-cv-02047 in the Southern District of New York.A federal judge in Florida in 2024 ordered United Parks to pay Sesame Workshop $11.4 million in a dispute over unpaid license fees. [See Sesame Street wins legal battle against SeaWorld.] Sesame Workshop said in yesterday’s filing that United Parks made that payment late last year, but now again has stopped paying royalties for licensing the Sesame Street characters in its theme parks.This is not the first party to accuse United Parks of stiffing its partners. The City of San Diego has been in court with SeaWorld San Diego, as well, over unpaid lease fees. [See San Diego, SeaWorld settle rent dispute.]Sesame Workshop also cited United Parks’ decision to close its Sesame Place San Diego park with little notice last September, converting it from year-round to seasonal operation. [Sesame Place San Diego drops holiday events for early closure] That park is set to reopen March 27.Sesame Workshop is asking the court to terminate its license agreement with United Parks and for unspecified damages and legal fees. A United Parks spokesperson issued a statement to the press: “We are aware of the lawsuit filed by Sesame Workshop and look forward to setting the record straight in court.”Update: Click over to the Discussion Forum, where we are talking about what the next step for Sesame Workshop might be: Which theme parks could get the U.S. license for Sesame Street?.
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