If you somehow managed to miss Straight Outta Compton, one of the year’s biggest (and best) movies, what in the absolute hell is wrong with you? Even former N.W.A. manager Jerry Heller caught the movie with his lawyer friends, a cinematic experience that has now inspired the controversial figure to file a massive defamation lawsuit against almost everyone involved with the production. After previously revealing he was simply considering his legal options, Heller has now filed a pricey suit against Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, the estate of the late Eazy-E, Universal, and others, according to TMZ.
Heller maintains that he was unfairly portrayed (by confirmed underrated genius Paul Giamatti, no less) as "the bad guy," and reportedly outlines all of the film’s purported inaccuracies in the suit. According to Heller, he never withheld a $75,000 check from Cube, "fraudulently induced" Dre and Cube to sign shitty contracts, enjoyed "lobster brunches" while such contracts were being signed, or got fired by Eazy-E.
In addition to that list of grievances, Heller says the filmmakers used his likeness without permission and sourced his novel without approval. Heller wants at least $110 million, with $35 million in compensatory damages and "at least" $75 million in punitive damages, as well as "all profits" from the briefly unstoppable blockbuster. However, the most fascinating part of the suit, as noted by TMZ, is the fact that Heller apparently suggested the following fake name for his Compton character: Gary Beller.
