The producer of the World War II espionage film Fortitude has sued Netflix, alleging that the streamer was responsible for the theft of an unencrypted hard drive containing the film after it was delivered for a screening and possible acquisition. The case matters because the missing drive could expose an expensive unreleased film to copying or piracy, although Netflix disputes that it bears the risk of loss.

Producer, writer and financier Simon Afram and production company Op-Fortitude Limited are seeking at least $105 million in damages in a Los Angeles federal court. They say the drive, containing a film that cost more than $45 million to make, was stolen from Netflix’s offices around June 2026; Netflix allegedly informed them on 25 June after a week of thefts. Fortitude, directed by Simon West, stars Nicolas Cage, Matthew Goode, Ben Kingsley, Ron Perlman and Michael Sheen.