Seth Rogen's beleaguered film The Interview faces lawsuits from K-pop artists

The musicians claim that the film wrongly uses 10-15 seconds of their track "Payday". Consent was almost granted, but "negotiations stopped"; however, the film's makers used it anyway, reportedly without the go-ahead.

The artists' agency FeelGhoodMusic is threatening the action. In a statement, a spokesperson said:

"There were initial discussions about including the song in the film score, but negotiations stopped so we were under the impression that it wasn't happening... it was only after the film was released that we became aware of the song's unauthorized use, without taking the appropriate and necessary steps to complete a contract with the artists. The artists were also hesitant about authorizing the use of the music, as the film is a very sensitive topic in Korea, so they are very surprised."

This is the latest in a long line of major issues surrounding the film; following a severe hack of studio Sony, and belligerence from North Korea - the target of the film's satirical comedy - the film was pulled globally. It has now been released online for US audiences, and BBC report that it has made $15 million so far.