The woman who claims to be the inspiration for the stalker in Netflix's hit series Baby Reindeer has sued the streamer — seeking damages of at least NZD$274m.
Fiona Harvey publicly said the character of Martha — portrayed by Jessica Gunning — was based on her.
She was suing Netflix alleging defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence, and violations of her right of publicity.
The suit was filed in the US District Court for Central District of California on Thursday (local time).
Her complaint said: "The lies that defendants told about Harvey to over 50 million people worldwide include that Harvey is a twice-convicted stalker who was sentenced to five years in prison, and that Harvey sexually assaulted Gadd."
"Defendants told these lies, and never stopped, because it was a better story than the truth, and better stories made money."
The first episode of Baby Reindeer began with a title card that read: "This is a true story."
Harvey's lawsuit claims this is "the biggest lie in television history".
"It is a lie told by Netflix and the show's creator Richard Gadd out of greed and lust for fame; a lie designed to attract more viewers, get more attention, to make more money, and to viciously destroy the life of plaintiff Fiona Harvey — an innocent woman defamed by Netflix and Richard Gadd at a magnitude and scale without precedent," the lawsuit reads.
Baby Reindeer, based on Gadd's one-man play, premiered on Netflix on April 11, quickly becoming a massive hit and on track to become the most watched show on the streamer.
In the show, Gadd plays a fictionalised version of himself named Donny Dunn who is pursued by a female stalker called Martha who sends him thousands of emails and harasses his family and girlfriend.
After the show's release, internet sleuths quickly honed in on Harvey's social media accounts, although Gadd said he had changed identifying details about the real-life Martha.
Harvey's social media accounts interacted frequently with Gadd during the period the show was set and shared specific phrases used in the show.
She made an appearance on Piers Morgan's YouTube show where she said she was considering legal action against Gadd and Netflix.
Harvey was seeking more than $274m from Netflix, including at least NZD$80m for actual damages; at least NZD$80m in compensatory damages for “mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life and loss of business”; at least NZD$80m “for all profits from Baby Reindeer”; and at least NZD$32m in punitive damages.
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