Ashley Dupré Goes Wild on Francis in Court

Governor's gal sues GGW honcho for $10 million, claiming he wrongfully used her likeness without consent for publicity purposes

Ashley Dupré wants Joe Francis to pay for her unwanted 15 minutes of fame (the ones not having to do with Eliot Spitzer).

The escort caught in the crossfire when the then governor of New York was nailed for blowing huge wads of cash on high-priced call girls has sued Francis for at least $10 million. (View the lawsuit.)

Her lawyers call his attempt to peddle years-old footage of her from Girls Gone Wild's archive an attempt to "exploit Ms. Dupré’s image and likeness for their own financial gain at the emotional and physical expense of Ms. Dupré."

To which Francis responded with his usual gentlemanly composure: "Eliot Spitzer got to have sex with Ashley for two thousand and she wants 10 million from Girls Gone Wild," he told E! News. "And all we got to do is see her naked. How is that fair?"

Although Dupré did sign a release, her lawsuit claims reps from Francis' Mantra Films plied the then 17-year-old with alcoholic beverages and "induced her into exposing her breasts while being filmed," according to the complaint filed Monday in U.S. District Court in South Florida.

"While drunk, Plaintiff was told to sign a 'Release,'" the suit states, calling the ploy a "routine business practice" employed by the GGW operation.

"The defendants have created websites, designed to induce the public to believe they are official or associated with Ms Dupré, when they are not," Dupre attorney Richard C. Wolfe said in a statement Monday.

"We believe the court and ultimately a jury will find the defendants have engaged in deceptive and unfair trade practices, have engaged in false advertising and have illegally exploited Ms. Dupré’s name and likeness."

All of which seemingly comes as a big surprise to the unabashed GGW crew, going by their response to the suit.

"We were very surprised and in fact amazed today that Ms. Dupré filed a lawsuit against Girls Gone Wild," Francis said in a statement, pointing out that his company opted to not publicly release new video of her when it was revealed she was still on the wrong side of 18 while fraternizing with the cameras in Miami Beach back in 2003.

(Although it really wanted to, with Francis telling E! News last month that they could still peddle her breast-baring exploits because there was "no sexual contact" in it.)

Francis went on to say today that they offered Dupré $1 million to promote and participate in GGW events after her relationship with Spitzer became public, but she turned them down—although, if she wanted to reconsider, "we'd be happy to discuss."

"She should keep in mind, it’s considerably more than the governor of New York paid her, and our activities aren’t illegal," he added. (Meanwhile, Dupré's suit calls Francis out for talking about his offer and then subsequently saying he had taken it off the table once he had unearthed the archival footage. "That advertisement is false," the suit says.)

“She’s seeking $10 million for topless photos taken in front of a room full of people, including two newspapers and multiple crews we had in the room," Francis continued. "These images were taken in public places and contain no sexual contact. We expect to triumph in this matter and continue to offer the best and hottest girls."

Overall, Dupré has charged Francis, fellow exec Cyrus Koewing, Mantra Films and MRA Holding with unjust enrichment, unfair competition, false advertising, unfair and deceptive trade practices in violation of Florida law and cybersquatting.