I am almost certain a different, happier arrangement could have been worked out if he'd agreed to license the artwork right at the beginning.
Maisel has said that he would never license this artwork for that purpose. So there would have been no licensing deal.
"And it's worth noting that trying to license the image would have been moot. When asked how much he would've charged for a license, Maisel told his lawyer that he would never have granted a license for the pixel art. "He is a purist when it comes to his photography," his lawyer wrote." [1]