‘We look forward to presenting our defense to the jury’: 4 years after its release, an award-winning Netflix series sued for defamation

Unquestionably one of Netflix’s finest achievements, Ava DuVernay’s incendiary When They See Us deserved every ounce of the critical acclaim and awards season recognition it received following its premiere in May of 2019.

Tackling the story of the “Central Park Five,” a group of juvenile males of color who were convicted of various charges including rape and assault following the sexual assault of a female jogger in 1989, they were eventually exonerated in 2002 before filing a lawsuit against the city of New York for wrongful conviction.

Carrying a 97 percent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and the winner of a Primetime Emmy, the show’s legacy hasn’t yet subsided after Linda Fairstein – the original prosecutor on the case – sought legal action against both Netflix and DuVernay for defamation. The latter parties tried to get it tossed out, but a new report from The New York Times indicates that things may end up proceeding to trial.

While it was acknowledged that there was a fictitious element attributing certain dialogue to composite characters, the judge ruled that When They See Us nonetheless “reverse-engineered plot points to attribute actions, responsibilities and viewpoints to Fairstein that were not hers.”

Furthermore, it’s noted that “Fairstein does not complain that she was defamed through the use of a fictionalized composite character. Her claims are directed to words and deeds attributed to her by name.” A statement supplied to the outlet by Netflix offers that “we are proud of When They See Us and fully support the incredible team behind the series including Ava DuVernay, Attica Locke and our colleagues at Netflix,” and that “we look forward to presenting our defense to the jury,” so this is clearly far from over.