Anonymous IMDb-Suing Actress Reveals Herself! So What's Her Name and Have We Seen Her in Anything?

Thesp who went by "Jane Doe" in court filing had sued the website for allowing her age to be posted

By Natalie Finn Jan 06, 2012 10:41 PMTags
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A lady supposedly never reveals her true age. But when a website reveals it for her... Well, that's just the way it is.

But one actress decided that shouldn't be the way it is and sued IMDb.com for allowing her real age to be included in her profile. (You know, which made her age just as available as the ages of thousands of other people listed in the online catch-all for info about anything and anyone who's worked in film and TV.)

A judge, however, threatened to toss "Jane Doe's" federal lawsuit if she didn't amend her complaint and include her real name.

So, who filed suit against IMDb and parent company Amazon because she claimed that she could lose out on jobs if potential employers knew how old she really was?

Vietnamese-born Huong Hoang is the birth name of the ticked-off thespian, though in her amended complaint she notes that she has only used her American stage name, Junie Hoang, throughout her career. Her dozens of credits, according to IMDb, include brief appearances in shows like 1000 Ways to Die, America's Most Wanted and Operation Repo and small roles in lesser-know films like Gingerdead Man 3: Saturday Night Cleaver and Ungirlfriendable.

And, according to IMDb, she's 40. (If it makes her feel any better, she totally looks younger in her head shot.)

"Shortly after subscribing to IMDbPro [a paid service], plaintiff noticed that her legal date of birth had been added to her public profile... revealing to the public that the plaintiff is many years older than she looks," Hoang's lawsuit states. "If one is perceived to be ‘over-the-hill,' i.e. approaching 40, it is nearly impossible for an up-and-coming actress, such as the plaintiff, to get work."

She is demanding $1 million to make up for potential earnings lost after being outed as "over-the-hill," which her suit classifies as allegations of breach of contract, fraud and violation of Washington state's consumer protection and privacy acts.

In a previous motion to dismiss, the defendants' attorneys called Hoang (then known as "Plaintiff" or "Jane Doe") selfish.

"Truth and justice are philosophical pillars of this court," the motion read. "The perpetuation of fraud, even for an actor's career, is inconsistent with these principles. Plaintiff's attempt to manipulate the federal court system so she can censor IMDb.com's display of her birth date and pretend to the world that she is not 40 years old is selfish, contrary to the public interest and a frivolous abuse of this court's resources."

"Jane Doe" was then ordered to amend her complaint and include her real name, with U.S. District Judge Marsha J. Pechman agreeing with the defendants that it was necessary to fully identify herself.

"While Plaintiff may face public ridicule and embarrassment if she elects to go forward under her real name, the injury she fears is not severe enough to justify permitting her to proceed anonymously," Pechman wrote."