Netflix sued for $105M for stolen hard drive

Netflix loses the copy of the World War II spy thriller movie that was worth at least $105 million.

On Thursday, writer-producer Simon Afram and his company, Op-Fortified, accuse Netflix of compromising the sale of a World War II spy thriller by losing the copy of the movie. The single copy worthed $ 105million.

According to a source at Netflix, an unencrypted master copy of the movie was in one of several drives that were stolen from Netflix’s office last month. In an investigation, the company concluded that the other drives were empty.

The company’s spokesperson issued a statement, “Netflix disputes any claim that it bears the risk of loss for a film delivered without the proper industry-standard safeguards. While we do not own the rights to Fortitude, we take content security seriously and have taken extra measures to support the filmmaker and his team. This includes conducting a thorough investigation and offering to monitor known piracy sites for any unauthorized distribution or sale.

According to the complaint registered, Netflix expressed interest in acquiring the film after receiving promotional materials in December 2025; they later requested a working cut for internal reviews. The filmmakers added that they were instructed to provide the key for a digital cinema package (DCP), typically used for safe delivery of films for screening.

On June 15, a producer for Fortitude hand-delivered the drive to Netflix’s office at Sunset Bronson Studios. The producer allegedly told Netflix that the DCP was unencrypted and instructed the company to delete the files after the screening before notifying him when the drive was ready to be picked up.

Ten days later, a Netflix executive disclosed that it was stolen, according to the complaint. “This is a first for us,” wrote Sean Berney, Netflix’s head of film acquisitions, in an email on June 25. “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. Our piracy teams are on high alert with the breach and will monitor.”

The lawsuit faults Netflix for allegedly refusing to disclose whether it filed a police report or enlist law enforcement to investigate the theft. According to the complaint, Netflix later declined a request by the filmmakers to involve the Los Angeles Police Department after they filed their own report.

Netflix said that it declined to share details about its ongoing investigation after a law firm representing Afram demanded $165 million for the movie in a “hostile attempt to extort money” rather than “work with us in good faith.”

The producers argued the theft has made the film significantly harder to sell because any prospective distributor would have to be told that an unencrypted copy was stolen before its release; that disclosure, they claim, could affect acquisition negotiations, insurance coverage and marketing plans, while creating the risk that the film could leak online before a commercial release. They say they paused sales efforts despite receiving interest from multiple domestic and international distributors, jeopardizing the film’s planned release strategy and awards campaign.

Fortitude, directed by Simon West, followed the true story of British Intelligence operatives using novel strategic operations to fool Nazi leadership. It features an ensemble cast that includes Nicolas Cage, Matthew Goode, Ed Skrein, Jordi Mollà and Alice Eve.