Business

Netflix Put His Photo in a True-Crime Film. Now, He’s Suing.

In 2019, Taylor Hazlewood posted a photo of himself holding a friend’s hatchet on Instagram as a tribute to his favorite childhood book, The Hatchet, a wilderness survival novel for young adults by Gary Paulsen. Posted in

Now that image has emerged in a completely different genre.

Hazlewood is suing Netflix for using his photo in “The Hatchet Wielding Hitchhiker,” a true crime documentary about a convicted murderer turned hitchhiker. Hazlewood, a 27-year-old respiratory therapist from Kentucky, was never convicted of murder, according to a lawsuit filed in Dallas district court last week, saying he was involved in the murder. Not even.

He is seeking $1 million in damages for defamation and misappropriation of his likeness.

Hazelwood contacted attorney Angela Buchanan by phone on Tuesday for comment. Buchanan said in his statement that “there would have been no confusion” if Netflix had done its “homework.”

“It’s because it’s not getting due attention,” she said. Hazlewood has always feared the impact the film would have on his personal relationships, employment and reputation in general. “

It was unclear why Hazlewood, who lives in Kentucky, filed a lawsuit in Texas against California-based Netflix. Netflix declined to comment.

The Netflix documentary, which premiered in January, follows the story of Caleb Lawrence McGilvery.In February 2013, Mr. McGilvery was hitchhiking in Fresno, California. The driver then attacked a bystander who was about to intervene. At that point, Mr. McGilbury took a hatchet out of his bag and punched the driver in the head repeatedly.

Interview with a local TV station It easily turned Mr. McGilvary, who identified himself only as Kai, into a hero of the internet and late-night talk shows.

Three months later, Mr. McGilbury was arrested and charged with murdering a man at his home near Elizabeth, New Jersey. he testified that he acted in self-defense He was convicted in 2019 and sentenced to 57 years in prison after an attempted sexual assault.

The Netflix documentary is lined with images of Mr. Hazlewood and Mr. McGilbury, including a narration that reads, “A murderer as cold as stone,” along with the text of a tweet that reads, “You can trust no one.”

According to the lawsuit, Hazlewood received his first words about the use of the image in the film from a friend who texted him days after the film premiered. And another friend sent a text message. Then another.

“Have you seen this? They put a picture of you with the killer lol,” one friend wrote. I hope my employer is okay with that.”

A friend said, “I was watching this murder documentary. They started showing me a lot of pictures of people. I said it was Hazelwood.”

“Did they steal your photo?” she wrote. “How did you get in there?”

Another friend’s mother said she asked if Hazelwood and McGilbury were related.

The lawsuit alleges that Netflix has caused Hazlewood “reputational damage, stress, anxiety and distress” and “loss of future employment and relationships because people believe he is dangerous or untrustworthy.” accusing him of inflicting a “constant fear of

The use of Hazlewood’s photo is the latest example of a true crime show cutting corners, said Bobby Miller, who hosts a pop culture podcast called “Afternoon Special.”

“This is the song and dance we’ve heard,” she said. “There are so many instances where we think that for the thrill of being the first and the thrill of having the most compelling story, we would end up without doing the journalism due diligence of fact-checking and triangulation.”

Nathaniel Brennan, an adjunct professor of film studies at New York University who teaches a class on true crime, said that considering “how much money they invested” in true crime series, “Netflix is ​​such a big deal.” But he said the speed of production may have diluted the final product.

“I don’t know if Netflix considers themselves journalists,” he said. “I don’t know if they’re up to a different standard.”

Related Articles

Back to top button