A federal court in the United States accepted a defamation lawsuit against the streaming service Netflix, filed by Fiona Harvey, the prototype of the heroine of the series “Fawn.” This was reported by The Hollywood Reporter.
The district judge, after reviewing the case, concluded that Netflix could have discredited Harvey’s claim that the film was based on a true story. And the heroine, inspired by Harvey’s personality and story, is depicted as a twice-convicted stalker sentenced to five years in prison for sexual assault.
In June, Harvey filed a lawsuit in federal court in California against Netflix, seeking at least $170 million from the service, including profits from the series. At the same time, Netflix filed a countersuit that allows statements intended to limit freedom of expression to be dismissed early.
However, the court ruled that Harvey was “likely to prevail” on the defamation charges.
As reported EADailyThe series “Fawn” premiered on Netflix on April 11 of this year and quickly became a real success. In the film, young loser Donnie Dunn tries to make a comedic career while working at a bar. One day he invites Martha, a plump 40-year-old woman, to drink tea, who begins to harass him. The woman asks for a date in every way possible, calls Donnie Fawn and soon discovers that she has become the target of persecution by a previously convicted stalker.
The series portrays Martha as a dangerous serial stalker who sent Fawn 41,000 emails, 744 tweets and 350 hours of voicemails.
The series is based on the play. Richard Gadd – director of the film, the plot of which he took from his own life. In the series, Gadd plays a fictional version of himself: he is Donnie Dunne. In an interview, Gadd said he changed the identity of the real Martha, but Internet users identified the real Martha by referring to Harvey as the series’ heroine.
Note that at the recent Emmy Awards ceremony, the series “Fawn” received numerous awards, including the award for “best miniseries.”
