This article originally appeared in Gold Rush , a subscriber-only newsletter about the perpetual Hollywood awards race. Sign up here . In the entertainment industry, as in life, truth can be a double-edged sword.
Just ask creator Richard Gadd, who wrote, produced, and starred in Netflix’s Baby Reindeer , based on a pair of deeply traumatic experiences from his own life of being stalked and sexually assaulted. His story is now at the center of a lawsuit against Netflix that claims Gadd’s series is riddled with inaccuracies. Well, sort of.
There’s a delicate balancing act to the $170 million suit brought against Netflix by Scottish woman Fiona Harvey. She has come forward claiming to be the inspiration for the character of Martha on Baby Reindeer — the woman who stalks Gadd’s character, assaults his girlfriend, and threatens his family. However, Harvey is accusing the Netflix show of fabricating many of these details, including that she was a twice-convicted stalker and that she sexually assaulted Gadd.
She’s suing for damages to her reputation as a result. Gadd has repeatedly urged fans of the show to stop attempting to suss out the real identities of his victimizers. “We’ve gone to such great lengths to disguise her to the point that I don’t think she would recognise herself,” Gadd told GQ of the woman who inspired Martha’s character.
“What’s been borrowed is an emotional truth, not a fact-by-fact profile of someone.” After the lawsuit was announce.
