The estate and family of late Static-X frontman Wayne Static have formally sent a cease-and-desist letter to filmmaker Matt Zane, escalating their opposition to his planned documentary about Wayne and his wife, Tera Wray. The legal notice follows the family’s recent statement, in which they object to any biography or documentary not approved by the estate, adding that they are not interested in the further development of any unauthorized project. Zane has since pushed back, questioning why his film is being targeted when other unauthorized Wayne Static documentaries already circulate online.
Zane expressed:
“This won’t stop me. I’m ready and willing to take this as far as it goes. If it ends up in court, so be it. This movie will be made and released if it’s the last thing that I do. If you go to YouTube right now you’ll see multiple unauthorized documentaries about Wayne Static with hundreds of thousands of views. None of them were threatened with legal action. I’m the only one served with a cease and desist letter — and I haven’t even started production yet. Why am I being singled out? Most people attacking me simply don’t know my history with Wayne and Tera or the work I’ve done over the past 15 years.
My first documentary, DV Karloff: The Altered Noise, won an award at the American Horrors Film Festival. I’ve worked with Zakk Wylde, John 5, DMC, Wednesday 13 and more, directing commercials and music videos. Static-X themselves hired me for multiple music videos, commercials, and social media content. Wayne hired me for all of his video work after Static-X. My career may have started in adult films, but I haven’t been in that world for many years. I’ve always felt people are too dumb to understand what’s really going on around us. It seems like you share that feeling.”
The filmmaker later posted the email on Facebook for full context. With both sides standing firm, the conflict shows no signs of cooling. Whether settled behind the scenes or in court, Zane maintains that his documentary will continue.
