Netflix is facing a $105 million [1] lawsuit after a hard drive containing an unreleased Nicolas Cage film was allegedly stolen from its offices.
The legal action highlights the vulnerability of high-value digital assets in the streaming era. Because the stolen material involves a master or encrypted copy of the film, the plaintiffs argue the theft has fundamentally compromised the movie's commercial viability.
Writer-producer Simon Afram and several co-plaintiffs filed the lawsuit in a California federal court on Thursday, July 30, 2026 [2]. The suit centers on the World War II thriller "Fortitude," starring Cage. According to the filings, the theft occurred at Netflix offices located in Los Angeles, California [3].
The plaintiffs allege that the loss of the drive jeopardizes the commercial exploitation of the project. There is some variation in the reported nature of the stolen data; some reports indicate the drive contained an encrypted copy of the film [4], while others state it was the master copy [5].
This litigation seeks $105 million [1] in damages to compensate for the potential loss of revenue, and the breach of security. The case now moves through the Los Angeles district court to determine the extent of Netflix's liability for the security failure.
Neither Netflix nor the legal team for Simon Afram have provided public statements regarding the specific security protocols in place at the Los Angeles facility at the time of the incident.
“Netflix is facing a $105 million lawsuit”
This case underscores the critical intersection of physical security and digital rights management for major studios. If the court finds that Netflix's negligence led to the theft of a master copy, it could set a precedent for how streaming platforms are held financially accountable for the loss of intellectual property before a project's official release.
