Kelley Heyer’s viral “Apple” dance is turning sour.
The person behind the viral choreography inspired by Charli xcx’s hit song of the same name is taking legal action against Roblox for allegedly using the dance she created without her permission.
Heyer first uploaded her “Apple” dance on TikTok in June 2024 at the height of the singer’s coined “brat summer,” and filed a copyright a few months after, according to a lawsuit obtained by PEOPLE, which was filed on April 11 in the Central District Court of California.
The complaint alleges that Roblox Corporation approached her to license the dance for use in its game, started selling an Apple Dance “emote” (a player avatar) before negotiations were finalized — and without her permission.
Jamie McCarthy/WireImage/Getty; Aitor Rosas Sune/WWD/Getty
Heyer’s legal team claims Roblox made $123,000 from selling the choreography as an emote.
Roblox is a popular online gaming platform and has approximately 80 million people playing it daily, as reported by BBC. It has more monthly users than the Nintendo Switch and Sony PlayStation all together.
“As a platform powered by a community of creators, Roblox takes the protection of intellectual property very seriously and is committed to protecting intellectual property rights of independent developers and creators to brands and artists both on and off the platform,” Roblox said in a statement to PEOPLE. Roblox is confident in its position and the propriety of its dealings in this matter and looks forward to responding in court.”
“Roblox moved forward using Kelley’s IP without a signed agreement. Kelley is an independent creator who should be compensated fairly for her work and we saw no other option than to file suit to prove that. We remain willing and open to settle and hope to come to a peaceful agreement,” Miki Anzai, attorney for Heyer, tells PEOPLE in a statement.
Kelly Heyer/Toch
Since Charli xcx released “Apple” and Heyer’s video went viral, the choreography became synonymous with the song and dominated TikTok. Creators, influencers and celebrities were replicating the dance in videos of their own.
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Kelley Heyer/Instagram
“1 month ago I made a dance on a whim and now look at everyone dancing and along and having so much fun,” Heyer wrote on TikTok on July 14 in a clip that has now been viewed over 1 million times.
Most recently, Charli xcx performed the hit during her set at Coachella 2025. Kylie Jenner, Alex Consani and Gabbriette were among the many spotted doing the famed dance in the crowd.
