Woman who claims she was stalker in 'Baby Reindeer' suing Netflix for defamation

LOS ANGELES (CNS) -- A woman who says she inspired the stalker character at the center of the Netflix series "Baby Reindeer" sued the streaming giant Thursday in Los Angeles for alleged negligence and defamation.

In the lawsuit, London-based Fiona Harvey claims she was identified as the person behind the series' obsessive stalker character, Martha, days after Netflix released the show in April. Since then, she alleges she has suffered emotional distress, nightmares, shame and depression, according to the lawsuit filed in L.A. federal court.

Harvey, 58, is asking for damages of more than $170 million, accusing Netflix and the show's creator, Richard Gadd - who is not a defendant in the suit - of making it easy for viewers to identify her.

"The lies that Defendants 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 34-page complaint says. "Defendants told these lies, and never stopped, because it was a better story than the truth, and better stories made money."

Harvey contends that Los Angeles-based Netflix and Gadd "destroyed her reputation, her character and her life," the lawsuit states.

Netflix officials issued a brief statement in response to the suit: "We intend to defend this matter vigorously and to stand by Richard Gadd's right to tell his story."

"Baby Reindeer" is a seven-episode series telling the "true story" of Donny, a struggling Scottish stand-up comedian played by Gadd whose life changes when he meets and is stalked by an older woman named Martha (played by Jessica Gunning), the suit says.

Harvey has said she did meet Gadd but disputed many of the events portrayed in "Baby Reindeer."