Producer Simon Afram sues Netflix for $105 mn

Film producer Simon Afram has filed a $105 million lawsuit against Netflix, alleging that a master copy of his unreleased Nicolas Cage-starrer Fortitude was stolen from the streaming giant’s Hollywood offices, according to a report by Reuters.

According to the lawsuit, filed in a California court on Wednesday, the filmmakers delivered an unencrypted master copy of the World War II drama to Netflix in June at the company’s request. Afram, who reportedly invested more than $45 million in the film over seven years, was in the process of negotiating its sale to Netflix or another distributor, Reuters reported.

Nine days later, Netflix allegedly informed the producers via email that “someone stole a good amount of drives from our desks this past week,” including the hard drive containing Fortitude, the lawsuit claims. The producers argue that the theft has effectively destroyed the film’s commercial value, as distributors may be reluctant to acquire a movie that could potentially surface on piracy websites. They further allege that Netflix failed to properly secure the hard drive.

“It is not fathomable that a sophisticated buyer would invest tens of millions of dollars to acquire the film — and tens of millions more to market it — while facing the constant risk that it could appear online to be viewed widely for free at any time,” the lawsuit states.