Villagers seek $30 million from ‘Borat’ filmmakers
Two residents of Glod, Romania, who claimed they were tricked into participating in the satirical film “Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan,” and were then depicted as thieves, racists and “simpletons,” sued 20th Century Fox and the filmmakers for $30 million Monday alleging fraud and civil rights violations.
Filed in federal district court in New York by Nicolae Todorache and Spridom Ciorebea, the suit claims the plaintiffs fall under a class of people protected by the laws of the U.S., the United Nations and other international laws.
“This film didn’t use a make-believe village or actors. It used a real village, with real-life [villagers] and affected real lives,” said attorney Edward D. Fagan, who filed the lawsuit.
The Romanian villagers “are unlike other persons who are portrayed in the film,” the suit states. “They do not speak English. They do not read English.”
Gregg Brilliant, a Fox spokesman, said the village was used as a set to portray a fictional village in Kazakhstan. “And this scene and the entire movie uses satire to expose racism, bigotry and intolerance.”
This marks the second lawsuit filed against Fox and “Borat,” which has grossed more than $90 million in the U.S. in its three weeks in release.
Earlier this month, two University of South Carolina fraternity members filed a defamation suit. Fox has said that lawsuit is without merit.
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