A digital artist has deleted sexually suggestive animations of Duolingo's teenage character Lily after reportedly receiving a removal request from the language-learning company's legal team. One of the posts had attracted nearly 30 million views before it disappeared.
The artist, known as Movail, announced on November 3, 2026, that they had removed their Duolingo-related artwork at the company's request. Movail apologized to followers and said they planned to take a break from creating new material.
An animation posted on October 31 with the caption "Don't give up on your lessons!" depicted Lily, the app's purple-haired goth character, in provocative poses. The video spread widely across social media before its removal, with screenshots and reposts continuing to circulate after the original disappeared.
Duolingo has not publicly confirmed the request, and Movail has not released the correspondence with the company's legal team. The specific grounds for seeking removal remain undisclosed.
Lily has developed a following beyond Duolingo's language lessons, particularly among fans drawn to her sarcastic personality and gothic appearance. In a 2023 shareholder letter, Duolingo described how fan-created content featuring the character had spread across Chinese social media, prompting the company to produce Lily-themed merchandise, including plush toys and stickers.
Movail had been creating animations featuring Lily for months before the reported intervention. In a November 4 post, the artist said they had maintained a Duolingo learning streak for more than four years and that their appreciation for the character had motivated the artwork.
Copyright owners generally have the exclusive right to authorize adaptations of their protected characters, although fan-created artwork may qualify for fair use. Courts consider the purpose of the new work, the copyrighted material used and its potential effect on the original work's market, among other factors.
Duolingo officially describes Lily as a teenager, a detail that has drawn additional attention to the sexually suggestive artwork. The company has not indicated whether the character's age or the nature of the animations influenced the reported removal request.
Movail's decision to delete the animations followed a reported request rather than a publicly disclosed court order. No finding of copyright infringement has been established, and the artist has not released correspondence identifying Duolingo's legal objections.
