Baby Reindeer's Alleged 'Real Martha' Sues Netflix for $170 Million

The central premise of Baby Reindeer was that its protagonist, Richard Gadd, relived his real-life trauma in the form of a series, chronicling a woman who stalked him relentlessly, but also his own mistakes made during the situation. .

Well, since the series' release, the so-called “Real Martha” has surfaced, accusing Netflix and Gadd of not doing enough to hide her identity. This is the Scottish Fiona Harvey, who recently interviewed Piers Morgan on this subject, and who is now suing Netflix for $170 million in damages.

Here's what she claims in the lawsuit:

“The lies defendants told about Harvey to more than 50 million people around the world include that Harvey is a twice-convicted stalker sentenced to five years in prison and that Harvey assaulted sexually Gadd,” the complaint states. “The defendants told these lies, and never stopped, because it was a better story than the truth, and the best stories made money. »

“As a result of the defendants’ lies, wrongdoing and completely reckless conduct, Harvey’s life has been ruined. Simply, Netflix and Gadd destroyed his reputation, his character and his life.

It's Netflix that's being sued for $170 million, not Gadd himself, and here's what Netflix says about the lawsuit in a statement:

“We intend to vigorously defend this case and respect Richard Gadd's right to tell his story.”

Harvey was “outed” by determined viewers who linked her social media presence to details relayed on the show. Plus, Harvey has a legal background like Martha and… a history of stalking, and all of this was discovered just days after the show aired. But if it's her, she claims the show made up facts about her, like the fact that she served prison time for the incident. And that the sexual assault shown in the series is fake, even though the scene is just Gadd and Martha in an isolated situation. She also says she didn't send Gadd 41,000 emails, saying it was “hyperbole.”

The $170 million in damages sought includes:

• $50 million for actual damages
• $50 million for “mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life and loss of business”
• $50 million for Baby Reindeer profits
• $20 million in punitive damages.

We'll see what happens with that, since the lawsuit was just filed. The saga continues for what will end up being one of Netflix's most popular series of the year and will likely garner numerous Emmy nominations, including one for Jessica Gunning's portrayal of Martha. But Gadd and Martha aren't done yet, it seems.

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