A judge ruled Friday that the Netflix show “Baby Reindeer” does not deserve to be promoted as a “true story,” allowing the real-life “Martha” to sue for defamation.
The woman, Fiona Harvey, said the series, created by Richard Gadd, falsely claimed that she was sent to prison for sexually assaulting Gadd, gouging out his eyes and stalking him. he claimed.
Netflix filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit in July. In his defence, Mr Gadd revealed that Mr Harvey had stalked him for years, occasionally pinching his bottom and sending him thousands of disturbing emails and voicemails while he was working in a London pub. I made it. He eventually reported her to the police and received a “harassment warning” but no criminal charges or jail time.
Judge Gary Klausner noted in Friday’s ruling that the series begins with the line “This is a true story,” prompting viewers to accept the following as fact: However, Martha’s actions on the show turned out to be far worse than the actions Harvey is accused of in real life.
“There is a significant difference between stalking and being convicted of stalking in court,” the judge wrote. “Similarly, there is a big difference between inappropriate touching and sexual assault, and between poking someone in the eye and gouging them. Although the plaintiff’s alleged actions are reprehensible, The defendant’s statements are worse than that and may have a different impact on the minds of viewers.”
Although Harvey’s name was not revealed on the show, online sleuths were able to quickly identify her based on digital breadcrumbs.
Gadd was an aspiring comedian while working at the Holy Arms pub and said the Netflix series was based on his experiences there. But he also said that both the show and the stage play on which it was based are works of fiction and are not intended to be a “point-by-point retelling” of events.
The Sunday Times reported in June that Gadd had been reluctant to include the line “This is a true story”, but added it at Netflix’s request. The judge noted this article in his ruling, saying it could show “actual malice,” meaning that Netflix knew the show was fictionalized but deliberately chose to separate it. He argued that he chose to express it in the form of
Klausner dismissed Harvey’s claims for negligence, violation of publicity rights, and punitive damages. But the judge allowed her to sue for intentional infliction of emotional distress, which applies to “extreme and outrageous” false statements.
“It appears that a reasonable viewer would understand the statements about Martha to be about Plaintiff,” the judge wrote. “The series states that the plaintiff is a convicted criminal who sexually and violently assaulted Gad. These statements rise to the level of extreme and outrageous conduct. It is possible.”
