A man named Brandon Siemion has filed a lawsuit in federal court in New York City claiming he came up with the idea for The Contender but it was stolen from him.  Siemion named several defendants, including Mark Burnett, Jeff Wald, Jeffrew Katzenberg and various NBC entities. Sylvester Stallone and Ray Leonard were not named in the suit according to the court's website. Although lawsuits like this are common whenever a television show, movie or song becomes successful, the New York Post reported that Siemion actually registered his proposal with the Writers Guild of America before meeting with trainer Tommy Gallagher to pitch him the idea.  Siemion claims Gallagher put him in touch with the Hollywood types, and when he eventually got a meeting with NBC, but the network told him it was not interested in his idea.  Gallagher has a recurring role in the show, which is five weeks into its run.