Producer Simon Afram says Netflix failed to safeguard the $45 million Nicolas Cage film after delivery; the streaming company argues the copy was unprotected.
Alpha Score of 47 reflects weak overall profile with weak momentum, weak value, strong quality. Based on 3 of 4 signals – score is capped at 90 until remaining data ingests.
Netflix has been sued for $105 million over the alleged theft of the master copy of Fortitude, a second World War drama starring Nicolas Cage. The film’s producer and screenwriter, Simon Afram, filed the lawsuit Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court.
Afram spent seven years developing the project and invested roughly $45 million, according to the complaint. The digital cinema package, or DCP, was delivered to Netflix’s Hollywood office in June for the streaming company to assess a distribution deal. An associate producer handed over the drive, the suit says.
The producer later made repeated attempts to retrieve the film but got no response, the filing states. More than a week afterward, Netflix sent an email saying the film had been stolen. The unencrypted master copy was among several hard drives taken from the company’s office, according to the lawsuit.
Afram’s legal team argues the loss has destroyed the film’s exclusivity and slashed its commercial value. Without an intact, unreleased master, the production could be copied, distributed, or leaked online, which the suit says has already made the project unsalable.
Netflix has disputed responsibility. In a statement, the company said the film was delivered without the encryption or password-protected links it normally requires for unreleased content. Sources familiar with Netflix’s procedures said films are typically shared through encrypted DCPs that need a Key Delivery Message to be accessed.
The company added that it has taken steps to investigate the theft and support the filmmakers. It said it has monitored known piracy platforms for any unauthorised distribution.
Afram’s lawsuit argues his team followed instructions provided by Netflix. The complaint cites guidance from the company stating, “If the DCP is encrypted, please have the keys open from the time the asset lands through EOD on 6/16.” According to the filing, the associate producer informed Netflix that the DCP was unencrypted and asked that the film be deleted after the screening. Even so, the suit contends, Netflix had a duty to keep the material secure and should not have left the drive in an unsecured office area.
The company has not said whether the theft was reported to police, the lawsuit says, nor has it provided a full account of the circumstances.
Fortitude has had legal trouble before. In 2023, Afram sued director Martin Scorsese, alleging Scorsese accepted $500,000 to serve as executive producer but failed to help develop the project. Scorsese’s representatives disputed the allegations, and the case was settled out of court in 2024.
There is no evidence so far that Fortitude has been leaked online. The lawsuit argues that uncertainty over the missing master copy has already hurt the film’s marketability and could derail any future distribution deals.
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