The woman who inspired the character of stalker Martha Scott in the LGBTQ-inclusive series Baby Reindeer can go forward with her defamation lawsuit against Netflix, a federal judge in California ruled Friday.
U.S. District Judge R. Gary Klausner declined to dismiss the suit, as requested by Netflix, and noted that there were several key differences between the real-life woman, Fiona Harris, and the character of Scott, even though Netflix billed Baby Reindeer as “a true story.”
The series depicts incidents in the life of struggling comedian Donny Dunn, played by bisexual actor Richard Gadd, who also created the show and recently won an Emmy as Lead Actor in a Limited Series.
Donny is working as a bartender in London and dealing with Martha, a lawyer, portrayed by gay actress Jessica Gunning, who also won an Emmy. Martha stalks him relentlessly, waiting outside his home for up to 16 hours every day. The series shows her grabbing Donny by his genitals, smashing a bottle over his head, and gouging his eyes with her thumbs. Martha, who once stalked a police officer as well, has two criminal convictions and served five years in prison for stalking.
However, none of this is true, Klausner wrote. Harris was a stalker, but she was never convicted of a crime, nor did she go to prison. Gadd said she stalked him for years and would touch him inappropriately, such as pinching his buttocks. She also sent him many disturbing emails and voice mail messages. When he reported her to police, she received a warning but was not prosecuted. The public was able to identify Harris as the model for Martha, and she said she was harassed to the point of receiving death threats. She has had nightmares, depression, panic attacks and more as a result, she said, and she has developed a fear of going outside. She filed her lawsuit in June.
Gadd expressed concern about using the line “This is a true story” in the series, but Netflix insisted on it, the judge noted. Baby Reindeer did include a disclaimer at the end of each of its seven episodes saying that while it was based on a true story, some characters, incidents, and dialogue had been fictionalized for dramatic purposes. Gadd’s original play, from which the series was developed, said it was “based on a true story.”
However, Netflix officials should have known that viewers would identify Harris and “harass her based on these false statements and portrayals,” Klausner wrote. “There is a major difference between stalking and being convicted of stalking in a court of law,” he continued. “Likewise, there are major differences between inappropriate touching and sexual assault, as well as between shoving and gouging another’s eyes. While plaintiff’s purported actions are reprehensible, defendants’ statements are of a worse degree and could produce a different effect in the mind of a viewer.”
Klausner dismissed Harris’s request for punitive damages and her allegations of negligence and violation of her publicity rights, but he said she could still pursue her claims of defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
