- Woman who allegedly inspired the character of ‘Martha’ is suing Netflix
- Netflix has said it will defend against the action
- Neither Netflix nor Baby Reindeer’s creator have ever confirmed if the woman was the inspiration for the character
The woman who was allegedly the real-life inspiration for the character of Martha in the hit Netflix series Baby Reindeer is suing the streaming service for a huge sum.
Fiona Harvey, who has identified herself as the person Martha is based on, is suing Netflix for defamation, negligence and privacy violations. In the lawsuit, filed in California, Harvey is seeking $170 million in damages.
Brutal lies
The lawsuit claims that Netflix told “brutal lies” about her to millions of viewers all over the world, in that it falsely depicted her as a convicted criminal who had been jailed for stalking offences. Harvey says she has never been convicted of any crime and has evidence to prove this.
However, Netflix has said it will “defend this matter vigorously” and stood by the right of Baby Reindeer’s creator, Richard Gadd, to “tell his story.”
No confirmation
Baby Reindeer first aired on Netflix on April 11, to critical and audience acclaim. It was top of the top 10 TV English titles for three of its first four weeks after it was released. It was adapted from Gadd’s autobiographical one-man standup comedy show and his experiences of being stalked in person and online by a woman he met in a pub in London.
In the first episode of the seven-episode series, it claims “this is a true story”, while the end credits say the show is based on real events, but certain names, characters and incidents have been fictionalized for dramatic purposes.
Neither Netflix nor Gadd have confirmed that Martha was based on Harvey.
