First setback for Netflix as California judge allows defamation lawsuit to go ahead.
Netflix has lost its bid to throw out a defamation lawsuit filed by the woman who says she was the inspiration for the stalker in the Emmy-winning hit Baby Reindeer. The Emmy award-winning series follows the life of Donny Dunn, a barman and struggling comedian, who is stalked by a woman called Martha Scott. Created by Richard Gadd – who also stars as Dunn – the series sparked an online frenzy over the real-life identities of some of the characters, with Scottish lawyer Fiona Harvey being named as the “real Martha”.
The show’s opening episode claims it to be “a true story” – a characterisation that has landed it in legal trouble after the script did not strictly adhere to real-life events. Netflix had argued that it could not be sued for defamation because the events depicted in the series were “substantially true,” and that in any case viewers would know it was not entirely factual because it was a drama. The streamer had offered as evidence the fact that Harvey had been investigated for stalking, had touched Gadd without his consent and had shoved him.
However, a judge in California ruled that there were considerable deviations between real-life events and those served up to viewers. “There are major differences between inappropriate touching and sexual assault, as well as between shoving and gouging another’s eyes,” wrote Judge Gary Klausner, in his ruling. There were other substantial disparities between what really happened and what was shown on screen, he noted. The judge said the show had exaggerated the actions of Harvey in the show with statements of a “worse degree”.
Netflix argued that most viewers would understand the claims made in the show to be “not factual” because it was shot in the style of a drama. It also said the similarities between the real and fictionalised people were so broad that average viewers would not have been able to identify Harvey as Martha. The court disagreed with the OTT streamer and has allowed Harvey to pursue her defamation case. But it dismissed her claims for negligence, gross negligence and a request for punitive damages.
