KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A Knoxville woman portrayed in the hit Netflix series "Inventing Anna" is suing the company for defamation and false light after she said her portrayal in the show was completely wrong.
In March, 10News interviewed Rachel DeLoache Williams about her depiction in the series. She had strong words for the streaming service due to the way it mixed fact with fiction to produce a larger-than-life depiction of Anna Sorokin, a convicted con artist who posed as a wealthy German heiress named Anna Delvey for years in order to maneuver her way into elite New York social circles.
Williams had formed a friendship with the woman she knew as Anna Delvey, who later conned the Knoxville woman out of tens of thousands of dollars on a single luxury trip.
"I think the way that they've blended fact and fiction together is particularly dangerous and it's effectively how misinformation is born," she said. "They took my name and then stuffed every offensive thing they could about being a young white woman and in a show that's trying to make a commentary about privilege. They basically just use my character to represent so many different things and in such a heavy-handed way that it's almost cartoonish, but it's still very damaging. If you're going to dramatize something where you choose to leave names intact, you also have to leave facts intact."
In the lawsuit, Williams alleged Netflix made a deliberate decision to portray her as a "greedy, snobbish, disloyal, dishonest, cowardly, manipulative and opportunistic person" for dramatic purposes. She said it led to a "torrent of online abuse" and exposed her to public contempt and ridicule.
"The magnitude of the harm to Williams caused by the Netflix’s defamation has been extraordinary by any plausible measure. The Series has been viewed by millions of people around the world, and as a result of Netflix’s false portrayal of her as a despicable person, she has been subjected to a torrent of online abuse which have caused her personal humiliation, distress, and anguish, as well as damages to her earnings and/or potential earnings," the lawsuit claimed.
Williams is seeking a trial by jury over the claims, asking for relief in the form of actual and presumed damages, punitive damages, and other compensation.
"Inventing Anna" was in the top 10 most-watched shows on Netflix. Williams said she was intrigued when she initially met the real-life Anna.
"There's something that pulls you in because it's enigmatic, or mysterious or like you can't figure out what the deal is. But while you're sort of fixating on that there's something deeper happening and that's how the con works," Williams said.
She said she was conned during an over-the-top vacation to Morocco where Anna was supposed to foot the bill.
"The cavalier disregard for the way that money was spent was very unique to Anna. Even when we got there she had signed up for tennis lessons every morning or she found ways to spend money that I would never have thought of. And I also didn't participate. It was very much I'm aware of myself as a guest," she said.
Rachel said Anna was having credit card issues so she put her card down for a temporary hold at the luxury hotel. After she left, the entire $60,000 hotel bill ended up on her personal card.
"Of course, things unfolded in a way I never anticipated, but it wasn't until after I was gone that I even knew my credit cards could sustain that kind of debt," she said.
Williams said she tried to recoup her losses and Anna made excuse after excuse and ultimately never paid her back. She said she was traumatized.
You can read more about Williams' side of the story at this link.