The murder mystery has repeatedly proven itself to be one of the most popular genres on Netflix, but things have taken a turn for the litigious after the streaming service was sued for insinuating accusations of murder in recent smash hit original No Limit.
Inspired by a true story, the fictionalized feature sees a character named Roxanna fall head over heels in love with world champion freediver Pascal Gauthier, but their relationship quickly turns toxic amid infidelity, as well as abuse of a physical and psychological nature. It was a huge success after premiering back in September of last year, but one of the real-life subjects has filed legal action against the company.
No Limit was inspired by Francisco Ferreras and his wife Audrey Mestre, the latter of whom tragically died during a dive in 2020 when the device that was supposed to carry her back to the surface ended up malfunctioning. In Netflix’s version, it’s insinuated that the apparatus was deliberately sabotaged in an act of homicide, with Ferreras opening up to Variety on his decision to file a defamation suit.
“I don’t know how people can do something like that. They turned the story around. They put it the way they wanted. That really hurt me.”
In response, writer and director David M. Rosenthal offered that every aspect of the narrative had been vetted by lawyers prior to production, leading him to believe that Ferreras doesn’t have a case. It’s a tricky situation given that the inspirations behind No Limit aren’t exactly hidden away from the world, and it raises questions about creative license being used to indirectly accuse somebody of murder in a story that’s clearly rooted in real-world events.