A dark comedy series that became an instant success on Netflix, “Baby Reindeer” claims to tell the real-life story of “Martha,” an alleged stalker who sends upwards of 40,000 emails and hundreds of explicit voicemails to aspiring comedian Richard Gadd and is eventually sent to prison as a result.
The problem is Fiona Harvey, the woman depicted, was tracked down by fans of the show and has publicly cried foul over the whole series and Mr. Gadd’s portrayal of her, using her clean criminal history and claims that that magnitude of messages doesn’t exist as the basis for a $170 million lawsuit filed Thursday against Netflix Inc. and Netflix Worldwide Entertainment in a federal court in Los Angeles, according to widespread media reports.
Ms. Harvey is suing for defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence, gross negligence, and violations of her rights “arising out of the brutal lies Defendants told about her in the television series,” states the lawsuit, accessed by Deadline.com.
Netflix released a statement Friday denying her claims, standing by the story told by Mr. Gadd, who legal analysts say will likely need to produce emails or recordings, and possibly Ms. Harvey’s alleged criminal record to prove his case.
