SEAWORLD, ORLANDO’S PARENT COMPANY, IS UNDER THE MICROSCOPE. SESAME WORKSHOP SUED UNITED PARKS AND RESORTS, CLAIMING THEY VIOLATED THE TERMS OF THEIR DECADES LONG PARTNERSHIP. ONLY WESH TWO’S CHRISTINA WATKINS SPOKE TO SEAWORLD, ORLANDO’S PARK PRESIDENT, ABOUT THE ALLEGATIONS THAT THEY ARE NOW FACING. JOHN PATERSON, SEAWORLD ORLANDO PARK PRESIDENT, TOLD ME HE KNOWS THERE’S A LOT OF NEWS CIRCULATING RIGHT NOW ABOUT THEIR PARENT COMPANY, AND THEY LOOK FORWARD TO SHARING THEIR SIDE OF THE STORY IN COURT. BUT FOR NOW, AS YOU LOOK HERE FROM CHOPPER TWO, YOU CAN SEE IT IS BUSINESS AS USUAL OVER AT SESAME STREET LAND AT SEAWORLD ORLANDO. SEAWORLD HAS BEEN SESAME WORKSHOP’S EXCLUSIVE THEME PARK LICENSEE IN THE UNITED STATES FOR THE LAST 45 YEARS. BUT NOW THAT LONG TERM PARTNERSHIP AT ALL SEAWORLD PARKS COULD BE IN JEOPARDY. WE LOVE YOU. SESAME WORKSHOP IS SUING SEAWORLD PARENT COMPANY UNITED PARKS AND RESORTS. THEY WERE ACCUSED OF WITHHOLDING ROYALTIES AND UNDERMINING THE ICONIC BRAND. IN THE 30 PAGE COMPLAINT WESH TO OBTAIN FROM MANHATTAN FEDERAL COURT, SESAME WORKSHOP SAYS UNDER THE MOST RECENT LICENSING AGREEMENT FROM 2017, SEAWORLD QUOTE, STOPPED FULFILLING ITS OBLIGATIONS UNDER THE AGREEMENT AND IGNORED THE AGREEMENT IN A MANIFESTLY HIGHHANDED WAY. SUNNY DAYS. THE COMPLAINT ALSO ADDRESSED HOW THE SUDDEN CLOSURE OF SESAME PLACE IN SAN DIEGO LAST SEPTEMBER LED TO, QUOTE NEGATIVE SPECULATION ABOUT THE COMPANY CLOSING OTHER THEMED ATTRACTIONS, LIKE THIS ONE IN ORLANDO. THEY SAID, QUOTE, AFTER SEAWORLD REMOVED THE SESAME STREET PARADE AT SEAWORLD ORLANDO FROM ITS CALENDAR. MEMBERS OF THE PRESS CONTACTED SESAME WORKSHOP AND CLAIMED THAT CONSUMERS THOUGHT THE SESAME STREET LAND AT SEAWORLD ORLANDO WAS CLOSING. THAT SESAME STREET THEMED ENTERTAINMENT WAS BEING SCRUBBED FROM THE CALENDAR, AND THAT EMPLOYEES WORKING IN THAT AREA HAD THEIR SHIFTS CUT. SEAWORLD ORLANDO PARKS PRESIDENT, SAYS WHILE THEIR PARENT COMPANY LOOKS FORWARD TO TELLING THEIR SIDE OF THINGS, THEY’RE ALSO FOCUSING ON NEW OFFERINGS AROUND THE COUNTRY. SESAME STREET IS IN THE NEWS RIGHT NOW. WE’RE EXCITED THAT WE’RE GOING TO BE OPENING SESAME PLACE LANGHORNE HERE REAL SHORTLY, I BELIEVE, NEXT WEEK. AND THEN WE’VE GOT SESAME PLACE, CALIFORNIA REOPENING. IN ADDITION TO WANTING TO END THE CURRENT TERMS OF THEIR LICENSING AGREEMENT, SESAME WORKSHOP ALSO HOPES TO RECOVER DAMAGES COVERING ORANGE COUNTY FROM CHOPPER TWO CHRISTINA WATKINS WESH TWO NEWS.

‘Gone rogue’: SeaWorld refused to pay Sesame Workshop millions of dollars in royalties, lawsuit says

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Updated: 5:00 PM EDT Mar 13, 2026

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The nonprofit Sesame Workshop, known for the children’s TV show “Sesame Street,” is suing SeaWorld’s parent company, United Parks & Resorts, accusing the theme ‌park operator of withholding royalties and undermining the iconic brand.”This action arises out of SeaWorld’s refusal to honor its contractual obligations as the licensee of Sesame Workshop’s iconic and valuable Sesame Street brand,” the lawsuit reads. For more than 45 years, “SeaWorld has been Sesame Workshop’s exclusive U.S. theme park licensee. Under licensing agreements in 1983 and 2006, the parties collaborated to open several Sesame Street-themed parks and attractions … “That includes the first-ever standalone Sesame Street theme park, Sesame Place Langhorne Park, and Sesame Land attractions at Busch Gardens and other SeaWorld-owned parks. The lawsuit claims the parties entered into their most recent licensing agreement in 2017, but a few years later, “SeaWorld stopped fulfilling its obligations under the Agreement, and ignored the Agreement in a manifestly high-handed way.”Further claims include: In 2022, SeaWorld failed to pay millions of dollars in royalties due to Sesame Workshop for Sesame Place Langhorne Park. SeaWorld locked Sesame Workshop’s team out of the parties’ shared social media approvals document and project tracker, and sent out dozens of marketing materials using Sesame Workshop’s IP without its approvalOn Sep. 15, 2025, SeaWorld abruptly announced that it would be closingSesame Place San Diego less than a week later on Sept. 21, 2025, and transitioning the park to a seasonal schedule. This came as a complete surprise to Sesame Workshop.SeaWorld is tarnishing the reputation of Sesame Workshop’s brand through abruptly closing a beloved standalone park and Sesame Street-themed attraction, disappointing children and families who already made plans to visit, and sending unapproved marketing materials using Sesame Workshop’s name Sesame Workshop says it tried to negotiate a resolution over the unpaid royalties but was ultimately forced to arbitrate the claim.In September 2024, a court ordered SeaWorld to pay the arbitration award in full, plus interest.”Still, SeaWorld dragged its feet in finally making payment until Sesame Workshop was forced to file a motion for the clerk to issue writs of garnishment in September 2025,” the lawsuit says. ” Since losing the arbitration—which, again, merely asked SeaWorld to pay Sesame Workshop royalties owed under the Agreement—SeaWorld has engaged in a series of willful, unilateral retaliatory breaches designed to undermine the parties’ relationship and harm Sesame Workshop.”What SeaWorld says SeaWorld claims Sesame Workshop failed to invest in its Sesame Street brand or to maintain Sesame Street as a core focus of its organization, according to the lawsuit. In a statement to WESH 2, SeaWorld said: “We are aware of the lawsuit filed by Sesame Workshop and look forward to setting the record straight in court.”Sesame Workshop is seeking to terminate agreements between the two organizations, a judgment against SeaWorld and an award of damages.

ORLANDO, Fla. —

The nonprofit Sesame Workshop, known for the children’s TV show “Sesame Street,” is suing SeaWorld’s parent company, United Parks & Resorts, accusing the theme ‌park operator of withholding royalties and undermining the iconic brand.

“This action arises out of SeaWorld’s refusal to honor its contractual obligations as the licensee of Sesame Workshop’s iconic and valuable Sesame Street brand,” the lawsuit reads.

For more than 45 years, “SeaWorld has been Sesame Workshop’s exclusive U.S. theme park licensee. Under licensing agreements in 1983 and 2006, the parties collaborated to open several Sesame Street-themed parks and attractions … “

That includes the first-ever standalone Sesame Street theme park, Sesame Place Langhorne Park, and Sesame Land attractions at Busch Gardens and other SeaWorld-owned parks.

The lawsuit claims the parties entered into their most recent licensing agreement in 2017, but a few years later, “SeaWorld stopped fulfilling its obligations under the Agreement, and ignored the Agreement in a manifestly high-handed way.”

Further claims include:

In 2022, SeaWorld failed to pay millions of dollars in royalties due to Sesame Workshop for Sesame Place Langhorne Park. SeaWorld locked Sesame Workshop’s team out of the parties’ shared social media approvals document and project tracker, and sent out dozens of marketing materials using Sesame Workshop’s IP without its approvalOn Sep. 15, 2025, SeaWorld abruptly announced that it would be closing
Sesame Place San Diego less than a week later on Sept. 21, 2025, and transitioning the park to a seasonal schedule. This came as a complete surprise to Sesame Workshop.SeaWorld is tarnishing the reputation of Sesame Workshop’s brand through abruptly closing a beloved standalone park and Sesame Street-themed attraction, disappointing children and families who already made plans to visit, and sending unapproved marketing materials using Sesame Workshop’s name

Sesame Workshop says it tried to negotiate a resolution over the unpaid royalties but was ultimately forced to arbitrate the claim.

In September 2024, a court ordered SeaWorld to pay the arbitration award in full, plus interest.

“Still, SeaWorld dragged its feet in finally making payment until Sesame Workshop was forced to file a motion for the clerk to issue writs of garnishment in September 2025,” the lawsuit says. ” Since losing the arbitration—which, again, merely asked SeaWorld to pay Sesame Workshop royalties owed under the Agreement—SeaWorld has engaged in a series of willful, unilateral retaliatory breaches designed to undermine the parties’ relationship and harm Sesame Workshop.”

What SeaWorld says

SeaWorld claims Sesame Workshop failed to invest in its Sesame Street brand or to maintain Sesame Street as a core focus of its organization, according to the lawsuit.

In a statement to WESH 2, SeaWorld said:

“We are aware of the lawsuit filed by Sesame Workshop and look forward to setting the record straight in court.”

Sesame Workshop is seeking to terminate agreements between the two organizations, a judgment against SeaWorld and an award of damages.