Fiona Harvey, the woman who claims to be the “Real Martha” from Richard Gadd‘s Netflix series Baby Reindeer has officially sued the streaming company for monetary damages of at least $170 million.
Harvey is suing Netflix for intentional infliction of emotional distress, defamation, negligence and violations of her right of publicity, claiming the show told “brutal lies” about her through the character of Martha (played by Jessica Gunning), who she claims is based on her. Show creator Richard Gadd, however, is not named as a defendant in the lawsuit.
“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,” reads the lawsuit, which is available online.
“Defendants told these lies, and never stopped, because it was a better story than the truth, and better stories made money.
“As a result of Defendants’ lies, malfeasance and utterly reckless misconduct, Harvey’s life had been ruined. Simply, Netflix and Gadd destroyed her reputation, her character and her life.”
The lawsuit also claims that the show’s beginning, which states that the happenings in Baby Reindeer are a “true story”, 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.”
Harvey’s $170 million lawsuit, which was filed on Thursday to the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, is comprised of $20 million for punitive damages, $50 million “for all profits from Baby Reindeer“, $50 million for “actual damages” and $50 million for “mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life and loss of business”.
Netflix and Richard Gadd are yet to respond to the lawsuit.
