The Scottish woman named Fiona Harvey claims that the character of Martha played by Jessica Gunning in the Netflix show Baby Reindeer is based on her, and has filed a lawsuit of $170 million in damages against Netflix. Harvey says that the character of Martha depicted as a violent stalker who sexually assaults a man named Donny played by Richard Gadd is inaccurate.
Harvey filed the complaint in a California federal court in which she alleged defamation and negligence on the part of Netflix and Richard Gadd who is also the writer of the book of the same title.
Harvey also says that as a consequence of her false representation in the show has led to death threats, anxiety, depression, and panic attacks.
On the other hand, the OTT giant Netflix has said that the company will defend the matter vigorously. Richard Gadd being the writer has previously shared that though the story is inspired by true events, the identifying details of the characters are altered.
According to various reports, Gadd initially recounted his experience with a stalker in a solo performance at the 2019 Edinburgh Fringe Festival before Netflix adapted it into a series. Despite Gadd’s appeals for viewers to refrain from uncovering real identities, online investigators swiftly linked Harvey to the character due to similarities.
Legal experts anticipate that the case is unlikely to proceed to trial. Instead, they predict Netflix will pursue a settlement, similar to its actions earlier this week in resolving a separate defamation lawsuit related to its 2019 series “When They See Us.”
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