American Gangster just got served.
A group of ex federal agents filed a class-action lawsuit against NBC Universal on Wednesday, accusing the studio of smearing their reputations by playing with the facts in its hit crime thriller starring Oscar winners Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe.
The complaint, filed in federal court in Manhattan, contends that the end credits of American Gangster incorrectly state that three-quarters of the Drug Enforcement Agency officers involved in the '70s take down of Harlem drug lord Frank Lucas were themselves convicted of wrongdoing after Lucas turned informant and cooperated with the cops.
Washington plays Lucas in the movie, which has grossed more than $130 million in North America, while Crowe portrays his chief adversary, New Jersey police detective Richie Roberts.
"This legend is false, defamatory and libelous per se. No such thing ever occurred," the lawsuit states.
"Not a single agent of New York City's DEA, or any other law enforcement officer, was convicted of anything based upon the so-called 'collaboration' of Lucas and Roberts. Nor was a single agent of New York City's DEA or officer of the NYPD convicted in any case or investigation involving Frank Lucas whether based upon a collaboration of Lucas and Roberts or any other resource." (Read the entire complaint.)
The former narcs are seeking more than $55 million in damages and punitive damages as well as a piece of Gangster's box-office take. They are also asking for a court order to halt further distribution of the film.
"With this utterly false and defamatory statement, the defendant has ruined and impugned the reputations of these honest and courageous public servants in the eyes of millions of people."
NBC Pictures said the allegations were "without merit."
"American Gangster does not defame these or any federal agents," read a statement from the studio. "The law enforcement officers portrayed in the film are identified as members of the New York City Police Department. The end legend specifically refers to members of 'New York City's Drug Enforcement Agency'—not the federal Drug Enforcement Administration where the plaintiffs formerly worked."
Apparently confident that a judge would refuse to grant an injunction, NBC Universal announced later Wednesday that American Gangster would be released on DVD Feb. 19.
A spokesperson for the Drug Enforcement Agency's New York office was unavailable for comment.
But Dominic Amorosa, a former U.S. Attorney who successfully prosecuted Lucas on drug charges back in 1976 and who now represents the DEA agents, told E! Online that his clients have been forced to counter false assumptions generated by the flick.
"NBC Universal was just exploiting these people through this legend and making the public believe that the corruption of law enforcement was true when really it was absolutely false," said the attorney. "Not a single DEA agent or officer of the NYC police department was convicted of anything connected with this investigation.
"So, when these guys are watching this movie...you bet your life they're angry."
Amorosa cited one unidentified former special agent who is now working with the Suffolk County, New York, prosecutor and who is embedded with the troops in Iraq.
"In the last month or so, this person has been approached by 20 soldiers and asked how it was that the DEA could be so corrupt," Amorosa said. "And although he explained it to people that the legend in this movie is an outright lie, he feels awful as a result of knowing that millions of other people who've seen this movie don't know that."
The suit didn't exactly come out of left field. In November, Amorosa shot off a cease-and-desist letter to NBC Universal executives asking them to retract and correct the end credits. He said that Gangster is "riddled with false information" and he chastised filmmakers for misrepresenting the agents involved.
Among the 400 plaintiffs who've joined the class-action is retired DEA agent Jack Toal, who worked with Lucas once he turned state's evidence.
"If they had said, 'this is based on a false story,' it would have been a lot better," he told the Associated Press.
(UPDATE: A judge dismissed the suit Feb. 15, ruling that no DEA agents were identified in the film, nor was there the implication of corruption among federal agents. She did scold the studio, however, for ending the film on a false note, writing, "There was and is no federal, state or local agency called the 'New York City Drug Enforcement Agency.'" It would "behoove a major corporation like Universal not to put inaccurate statements at the end of popular films.")