After its release in April, the British stalking series Baby Reindeer shot to the top of the Netflix charts and stayed there for several weeks. The story, inspired by personal experiences, by series creator and author Richard Gadd, who also stars in the main role, sparked a series of controversial discussions.
While the series is celebrated by many for its brave and authentic portrayal of the issues of stalking and sexual abuse of men, Reindeer Baby came under criticism after the real-life role model of the series stalker described herself as the actual victim. Now the woman named Fiona Harvey has officially filed a lawsuit against Netflix because Reindeer Baby is said to have destroyed her life.
Baby reindeer role model wants at least $170 million in damages from Netflix
The story of the series revolves around Donny Dunn (Richard Gadd), who wants to make it as a comedian and author in London. After he meets Martha (Jessica Gunning) in a pub, he constantly receives messages, calls and voicemails from her. When he deals with his current stalker, a sexual trauma from the past comes back to the surface.
As Variety reports, Fiona Harvey has now filed a lawsuit against Netflix. She has publicly described herself as a role model for Martha from Baby Reindeer and sees her life as being destroyed by the series. She explained this in detail in an hour-long interview with British talk show host Piers Morgan, which was published on YouTube in early May.
Lead actor and series creator Richard Gadd is said to be Story dramatically distorted and real events distorted to tell a better story. In her lawsuit, Harvey is demanding at least $170 million from the streaming service. Netflix is said to have not undertaken any of its own efforts to verify the story from Gadd’s series and have the alleged “true facts” checked.
The streaming service has already reacted and wants to continue to defend Gadd.
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