The Laundromat hit Netflix according to plan today, after a Connecticut judge stopped an injunction that would prevent the film from streaming on the service.
Jürgen Mossack and Ramón Fonseca — the pair behind the no longer operational Mossack Fonseca & Co. law firm in Panama — filed a lawsuit on Wednesday (October 16) to stop the film's release.
Gary Oldman and Antonio Banderas portray the lawyers in Steven Soderbergh's film, and the real-life Mossack and Fonseca argued that they are depicted as "ruthless uncaring lawyers who are involved in money laundering, tax evasion, bribery and/or other criminal conduct."
Netflix filed to dismiss the complaint, arguing that the film is within the rights of Constitutional speech.
The Connecticut judge moved the case to California yesterday (October 17), and as such, the film hit Netflix at midnight according to plan.
"This lawsuit was a frivolous legal stunt designed to censor creative expression," a Netflix spokesperson said in a statement. "Steven Soderbergh's film tells an important story about the exploitation of innocent people and the misuse of the world's financial system. Fortunately, you can now watch The Laundromat — the film that Mossack and Fonesca tried to censor — on Netflix."
The film also stars Meryl Streep and Sharon Stone, as investigators trying to uncover the fraud that eventually came to be known as the Panama Papers scandal.
The film previously screened at film festivals like Venice and TIFF. Read Exclaim!'s review of The Laundromat.
Jürgen Mossack and Ramón Fonseca — the pair behind the no longer operational Mossack Fonseca & Co. law firm in Panama — filed a lawsuit on Wednesday (October 16) to stop the film's release.
Gary Oldman and Antonio Banderas portray the lawyers in Steven Soderbergh's film, and the real-life Mossack and Fonseca argued that they are depicted as "ruthless uncaring lawyers who are involved in money laundering, tax evasion, bribery and/or other criminal conduct."
Netflix filed to dismiss the complaint, arguing that the film is within the rights of Constitutional speech.
The Connecticut judge moved the case to California yesterday (October 17), and as such, the film hit Netflix at midnight according to plan.
"This lawsuit was a frivolous legal stunt designed to censor creative expression," a Netflix spokesperson said in a statement. "Steven Soderbergh's film tells an important story about the exploitation of innocent people and the misuse of the world's financial system. Fortunately, you can now watch The Laundromat — the film that Mossack and Fonesca tried to censor — on Netflix."
The film also stars Meryl Streep and Sharon Stone, as investigators trying to uncover the fraud that eventually came to be known as the Panama Papers scandal.
The film previously screened at film festivals like Venice and TIFF. Read Exclaim!'s review of The Laundromat.
