Netflix is facing a $105 million lawsuit after an unencrypted copy of the unreleased World War II film Fortitude, starring Nicolas Cage and Ben Kingsley, was allegedly stolen from its offices.
According to Variety, Swiss businessman and producer Simon Afram filed the lawsuit, claiming he spent seven years and approximately $45 million developing the film before submitting it to Netflix for acquisition consideration.
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The lawsuit alleges that an associate producer delivered a digital cinema package (DCP) containing the film to Netflix’s headquarters in June. After the company decided not to acquire the rights, Afram attempted to retrieve the copy but claims Netflix became unresponsive.
According to the complaint, Netflix later acknowledged that the film had been stolen.
“This is a first for us. Unfortunately, someone stole a good amount of drives from our office desks this past week. We’ve been working through this with our security teams to no luck,” Sean Berney, Netflix’s Director of Original Film, wrote in an email quoted by Variety.
The lawsuit seeks $105 million in damages, arguing that the loss of the only unencrypted copy of the film caused significant financial harm.
Fortitude has faced a difficult journey to the screen.
In 2023, Afram sued filmmaker Martin Scorsese, alleging the Oscar-winning director accepted $500,000 to serve as an executive producer but failed to help move the project forward.
Scorsese’s legal team denied the allegations, arguing that Afram was inexperienced in the film industry and had unrealistic expectations about the role. The case was settled out of court in 2024.
In response to the latest lawsuit, Netflix denied responsibility for the loss.
“Netflix disputes any claim that it bears the risk of loss for a film delivered without the proper industry-standard safeguards,” the company said in a statement.
Source: Khaleej Times