In death, Leonard Cohen’s voice popping up in hit TV shows, violent video games
MONTREAL — When it comes to getting permission to use Leonard Cohen’s music, Ubisoft’s bloody Assassin’s Creed trailer gets an enthusiastic green light, while ads, pornography and even the Montreal Symphony Orchestra don’t fare as well.
Since his death in 2016, the late Canadian singer’s gravelly baritone has been popping up everywhere from highbrow Montreal art exhibits to the end credits of the hit American TV shows “Billions” and “The Americans.”
None raised more eyebrows than Ubisoft, which chose to feature the title track to Cohen’s final album, “You Want it Darker,” on the trailer for its latest version of its violent game franchise, whose target audience was born decades after the singer wrote many of his greatest hits.
While the process of obtaining song rights is a lengthy and complex legal process, the final approval falls to Robert Kory, Cohen’s longtime manager and the trustee of the late singer’s estate.