UPDATE: Since the Netflix crime miniseries Baby Reindeer premiered in April, a woman alleging to be the inspiration behind the character Martha has spoken out about her frustration with their likeness. After previously threatening legal action, she's officially filed a lawsuit against the streaming giant.
According to Variety, the Scottish woman who claims to be the real-life equivalent of Martha in the series created by Richard Gadd about his experience with a stalker is suing Netflix for damages worth at least $170 million.
The woman, Fiona Harvey, filed the lawsuit on June 6 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California and named Netflix, not Gadd, in the documents. She alleged the streaming service was the source of defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence, and violations of her right of publicity due to her similarity to the character Martha (played in the show by Jessica Gunning) and viewers' response in tracking her down to find her true identity. She is seeking $50 million for actual damages, upwards of $50 million in compensatory damages for "mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life and loss of business," at least $50 million "for all profits from Baby Reindeer," and at least $20 million in punitive damages.
"The lies that [Netflix] 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," the filing states. "Defendants told these lies, and never stopped, because it was a better story than the truth, and better stories made money."
The complaint also notes how Baby Reindeer opens by saying it is a "true story," which Harvey and her attorneys claim Netflix "did literally nothing to confirm" and "is the biggest lie in television history."
Harvey's legal action comes a little over a month after she gave an on-camera interview on Piers Morgan's YouTube show Piers Morgan Uncensored, calling Baby Reindeer "a work of fiction [and] hyperbole."
During the interview, she spoke out about the alleged similarities between her and Martha and her history with Gadd, who plays a fictional version of himself named Donny Dunn in the show. She claimed to have only sent the Scottish comedian/writer "a handful" of emails and that she had never been previously convicted of stalking.
ORIGINAL STORY PUBLISHED APRIL 30: The alleged real-life stalker at the center of Netflix's crime miniseries Baby Reindeer has said she's unhappy with the hit show.
A woman has claimed in an interview with The Daily Mail to be the inspiration for the character Martha (played by actress Jessica Gunning) in the new series created by Richard Gadd and based on his own experience with a stalker. She told the outlet, which kept her identity anonymous, that she has received "death threats and abuse from [creator] Richard Gadd's supporters."
She also said that she's considering legal action against Gadd.
The seven-episode show is based on the Scottish comedian's real-life experience of being stalked by an acquaintance, who sent over 40,000 emails and 350 hours of voicemail messages to him over a four-year period. Gadd both wrote the series and stars in it as a fictional version of himself named Donny Dunn.
Speaking to the Mail, the unnamed woman "denied being a stalker" and called out Baby Reindeer for "bullying an older woman on television for fame and fortune."
Gadd has not divulged details about the real-life Martha's identity, and has stated in interviews that the situation was "resolved."
The showrunner/actor also said that he and Netflix went to "great lengths" to disguise the real woman's identity.
However, the woman alleging to be the inspiration for Martha said that there are similarities between herself and the character, including their age, former occupation, and nationality. She also claimed that certain details from the series, including the "curtain" innuendo from the show's early episodes, are taken from real life.
"He's using Baby Reindeer to stalk me now. I'm the victim. He's written a bloody show about me," she claimed of Gadd.
She later added, "If he wanted me to be properly anonymous, he could have done so."
In the weeks since Baby Reindeer premiered on Netflix, social media has filled with speculation about the real-life identities of the show's characters. Some viewers have gone on to wrongly accuse people of being the inspiration behind Martha, as well as the character Darrien, a man played in the show by Tom Goodman-Hill who sexually assaults Donny.
After theater director Sean Foley was falsely accused of being the real-life counterpart of Darrien, he posted a statement on X stating that police are investigating "defamatory abusive and threatening posts" brought against him.
Following Foley's post, Gadd shared a statement of his own on his Instagram Stories, per Deadline. “People I love, have worked with, and admire (including Sean Foley) are unfairly getting caught up in speculation,” Gadd wrote in the now-expired post. “Please don’t speculate on who any of the real life people could be. That’s not the point of our show.”
Gunning has also spoken out on the speculation. While speaking with Dazed, the actress highlighted that Gadd and Netflix went to "huge measures" to protect the identities of the real-life people who inspired the series.
She said, "I think it’s really sad if that is happening because they clearly haven’t watched the show in the right way and haven’t got the message of the show."
Gunning continued, "That’s definitely not what our intention was in any way. Huge measures were put in place for nobody to be identified on purpose. Netflix and Richard really didn’t want that. So I think it is a shame. I imagine it’s inevitable because people are fascinated nowadays with true stories, but I would urge people to think of the individuals and not do that."
