Actor Sues Google for ‘Innocence of Muslims’

LOS ANGELES (CN) - A second actor has sued Google over "Innocence of Muslims," the trailer for the movie about the prophet Muhammad that sparked the 2012 attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, and other violent protests around the world.

Gaylord Flynn of Riverside County sued YouTube's parent company Google on Thursday in a federal complaint of copyright infringement, fraud, unfair business practices, libel and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

Flynn claims he had no idea that he would be appearing in anti-Islamist propaganda piece when he signed on for what he thought was a desert adventure movie.

Lead defendant writer-director Sam Bacile, real name Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, reportedly went into hiding after the trailer's release, which depicted Muhammad as a child molester and womanizer.

Suing Google only for copyright infringement, Flynn claims that Google's search engine still includes results for torrent sites where users may download the trailer.

The 9th Circuit in February ordered Google to remove the trailer from YouTube, after actress Cindy Lee Garcia filed a similar complaint back in 2012.

"In this case, notwithstanding the fact that Google has been informed both by Ms. Garcia and by plaintiff that its platforms continue to direct consumers to torrent sites that contain infringing content, Google has failed to act," the complaint states.

After the 14-minute trailer was uploaded to YouTube, violent protests broke out in Egypt and Libya, where an attack on the Benghazi consulate claimed four American lives.

Just months after the trailer's release, Garcia sued the film producers, claiming that they made her believe that she would be appearing in an adventure movie called "Desert Warrior." The filmmakers later dubbed her voice to include anti-Islamist dialogue in Arabic.

Flynn makes similar claims in his 17-page complaint. He says he thought he would be appearing in a desert adventure, not a "bigoted piece of hate speech."

At the time of the video's release, both President Barack Obama and then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton condemned the trailer.

Flynn says he received death threats after the trailer's release in the summer of 2012.

He seeks an injunction, damages, profits, restitution, and costs.

Flynn is represented by M. Cris Armenta.

Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Subscribe to Closing Arguments

Sign up for new weekly newsletter Closing Arguments to get the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and hot cases and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world.

Email *

Submit