My Little Reindeer: the “real Martha” of the series demands 170 million dollars from Netflix

One of the television events at the start of 2024 takes a strange legal turn. Fiona Harvey, the woman who inspired the character of Martha in the popular series My Little Reindeer of Netflix, filed a complaint this Thursday, June 6, in federal court in Los Angeles. She is demanding $170 million from the streaming platform.

Surprise card in court

After weeks of threats against Netflix to obtain compensation, Fiona Harvey complied and filed a legal request for “defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence, gross negligence and violations of publicity rights”.

According to the document sent to the courts, Harvey attacks the streaming service which maintains the blur between fiction and reality: “The lies the defendants told about Fiona Harvey to more than 50 million people around the world include that she is a twice-convicted stalker sentenced to five years in prison, and that Harvey sexually assaulted Richard Gadd. The defendants told these lies because it was a better story than the truth and the best stories make money.”

For its part, the streaming giant reacted: “We intend to vigorously defend this case and defend Richard Gadd’s right to tell his story.”

As a reminder, the series My Little Reindeer tells the story of Donny, a broke comedian who one day shows kindness to the fragile Martha. But it triggers a stifling obsession that will destroy both of their lives.

Created by Richard Gadd, who also plays the role of Donny, the series is based on the supposedly true story of the actor and his toxic relationship with the real Fiona Harvey. In the series, her name is Martha and she is played by Jessica Gunning.

Between dark humor and taboo subjects, My Little Reindeer explores with rare finesse and accuracy the complexity of depression and buried trauma. The series was Netflix’s surprise hit at the start of 2024.

• Watch the trailer for My little reindeer :

Thanks to its quality and word of mouth, My Little Reindeer totaled 82 million views in 50 days of broadcast, positioning itself at the door of the top 10 most popular programs of all time on the streaming platform, alongside Bridgerton And Stranger Things.

This unexpected plebiscite also came with its share of criticism and controversy. Actress Jessica Gunning was criticized by viewers, when Fiona Harvey did not appreciate being portrayed as a harasser by the program.

This filing of a complaint appears to mark the start of a long legal process. With the outcome still uncertain, this will inevitably tarnish the success of the series My Little Reindeer, which remains for us one of the very nice surprises of recent weeks and a program to discover without delay. To be continued.