Michael Jackson [ tickets ] was hit with a lawsuit this week filed by John Landis who claims the pop star does not have the proper rights to adapt a stage production based on the "Thriller" video.

Landis, who co-wrote and directed the video, sued Jackson and producer James L. Nederlander's company, which earlier this week announced that it had acquired the rights to "Thriller" and songs from the album of the same name, according to an Associated Press report.

The suit seeks a judge's order that states Jackson lacks the adequate rights to transfer to Nederlander and that the producer doesn't have the authority to create a stage show based on the video or documentary about the video that Landis directed. His attorney said the director would seek to stop the show "if it becomes necessary," according to the AP report.

Landis claims Jackson was paid more than $400,000 for the rights that Landis owns.

The director also filed a personal suit against Jackson, claiming he hasn't been paid royalties on "Thriller" for at least four years." In that suit, Landis claims he is owed 50 percent of profits from "Thriller" projects and alleges Jackson continues to license rights to video games, toys and comic books based on the 14-minute music video and the documentary. The suit also seeks an accounting of the video's profits.