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by ceejayoz 1168 days ago
They can try. They'll generally fail. Trademark law has specific parody exceptions, which permits things like https://variety.com/2022/digital/news/adam-mckay-fake-chevro..., https://www.huffpost.com/entry/shell-arctic-ready-hoax-green..., and https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/spoof-apple-site-touts-bend... to exist. No changing the company name was necessary in any of these.

"The Circle" isn't a parody. Social commentary, perhaps, and its commercial nature as a film would make reaching the threshold for parodic fair use harder. https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/parody