‘Our Father’: Netflix Faces 2 Lawsuits After Publicly Identifying Secret Children of the Disgraced Fertility Doctor Without Their Consent

Netflix released another hit documentary this past spring. But not everyone was happy with how the streaming giant told the story of Our Father. The documentary details how an Indianapolis-based fertility doctor unknowingly inseminated scores of women with his own samples rather than anonymous donors. 

The Netflix production shares details of Dr. Donald Cline and how some of his children discovered they were half-siblings. However, two women in the documentary say Netflix identified them without their consent. Now they are bringing lawsuits against the company seeking edits to the film and compensatory damages. 

‘Our Father’ details how Dr. Donald Cline fathered an estimated 94 children as a fertility doctor 

The story of Our Father begins with Jacoba Ballard, who discovered she had siblings she didn’t know about after she took an at-home DNA test in 2015. As she started putting the pieces together of her connections with at least eight biological siblings, she initiated an investigation with a local news station in Indiana.

The investigation led to Cline, who used his sperm to inseminate patients of his fertility clinic without their knowledge or consent. All told, Cline is thought to have fathered an estimated 94 children. 

Cline is now retired and still living in Indiana. Though the scandal caused an uproar in the larger community, there were no laws about using personal samples when he inseminated his patients in the 1970s and ‘80s. Cline was not criminally charged for his conduct as a doctor. However, he did plead guilty to two counts of obstruction of justice for initially misleading investigators. 

The documentary identified some of the ‘secret children’ without their consent, lawsuits allege

Netflix and Blumhouse Productions, the makers of Our Father, contacted many of the “secret children” to interview them for the documentary that recapped the real-life investigation. Two of the women fathered by Cline say that the producers outed their identities in the documentary without their consent, per NBC affiliate WTHR.

As a result, they sued the media producers. The unnamed women allege the company representatives promised anonymity unless they gave express consent to be named. According to the women, neither provided that permission. 

The documentary was an instant hit. It trended on Netflix when it was released in May, and was watched by millions of Netflix subscribers. More than 250,000 Indiana residents had seen the film just a few weeks after it was released, according to the lawsuits.

Per the legal complaints, exposing their identities has caused the two women “severe harm, including, but not limited to, reputational injury, distress, embarrassment, and emotional trauma,” WTHR reports.

One of the women is asking that Netflix and Blumhouse remove her name, image, and likeness in the documentary and in their online promotions. The other is requesting her name be removed. The women are also seeking compensatory damages. 

Netflix has been sued for its productions in the past, including ‘Cuties’ and ‘Afflicted’ 

Tackling sticky topics via documentaries is bound to have its share of controversy. This isn’t the first time Netflix has found itself in hot water over its content. Afflicted was one such series, which followed several people suffering from chronic illnesses.

However, many of those subjects later sued the platform claiming they were defamed when Netflix misrepresented their conditions. A California judge ruled the case could move forward in April, but has yet to progress from there, according to The Hollywood Reporter. 

Netflix was also indicted by a grand jury in Tyler County, Texas, for its distribution of the controversial film Cuties. The indictment compared the production as something akin to child pornography, KLTV reports. However, a judge dismissed the case when the local district attorney filed a motion to dismiss it “without prejudice.” 

In another suit, Zac Efron and Netflix find themselves defending the Down to Earth with Zac Efron series, which a health and wellness brand says is tarnishing its good name.

According to TMZ, Down to Earth Organics established the rights to use “Down to Earth” for its media purposes before the Netflix series was around. The wellness company sued Netflix for damages and is seeking an injunction from using the “Down to Earth” branding in the ongoing show.