Netflix says Baby Reindeer is 'not a documentary' and clearly involves dramatisation

LONDON — Baby Reindeer (2024) clearly involved dramatisation, Netflix said on Sept 17, in response to concerns over its compliance standards sparked by online speculation about the real-life people behind the characters in its hit miniseries.

"This is a true story" appears on-screen after the opening of the show, the chilling story of a bartender stalked by a customer, written by and starring Scottish comedian Richard Gadd.

Netflix was sued in June for at least US$170 million (S$220 million) by a Scottish woman who said she had been defamed by her portrayal as a stalker in Baby Reindeer.

The global hit won four awards at the Emmys on Sept 15, including for outstanding limited or anthology series and outstanding lead actor in a limited or anthology series or movie for Gadd, 35.

Netflix co-chief executive Ted Sarandos said on Sept 17 the show was Gadd's true story, although elements were clearly dramatised.

"I am very proud of Richard and proud of the story he told, and the way he told it, and it is his true story," he told the Royal Television Society London Convention.

Baby Reindeer differed from other shows in the same genre by not claiming to be "based on" a true story, but to be an actual one, raising questions about the ethics of portraying real people.

"It is not a documentary, and there are elements of the story that are dramatised," Sarandos said. "We are watching it performed by actors on television, we think that it's abundantly clear that there is dramatisation involved."

Fiona Harvey has publicly claimed to be the inspiration behind the show's Martha, played by English actress Jessica Gunning, who won for outstanding supporting actress in a limited or anthology series or movie at the Emmys on Sept 15.

The 38-year-old shares a physical resemblance with Harvey, who, like the character, is a London lawyer.

In a complaint filed in Los Angeles, Harvey said Netflix and Gadd had gone too far by suggesting through the show that she was a twice-convicted stalker who had been sentenced to five years in prison.

Harvey denied having stalked Gadd, who in the show plays a fictional version of himself named Donny Dunn, or having been convicted or imprisoned. But she said many people could not tell the difference, and that thousands of Reddit and TikTok users talk about her as the "real" Martha.

Netflix said in response to the lawsuit that it intended to defend the matter "vigorously".

Sarandos said on Sept 17 the debate stirred by the series was "fairly unique" to UK, adding it was "not happening anywhere else in the world".

He also announced a new multi-year scripted series deal with Gadd and said Baby Reindeer would be one of Netflix's top four global shows — all produced in UK — when the company publishes its audience engagement report later this week.

"Number one, two, three and four shows were all produced here in the UK: Fool Me Once, Baby Reindeer, Bridgerton and The Gentlemen," he said.

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