Netflix indicted by Texas Grand Jury for French ‘Cuties’ Film

Netflix has been indicted on a criminal charge that alleges the streaming giant promotes “lewd visual material” of a child.

The lawsuit centers on the release of the French film “Cuties” that has been mired by controversy since its release last month.

The document, filed on September 23, said Netflix promoted material in the film that depicts lewd exhibition of the pubic area of a clothed or partially clothed child who was younger than 18 years of age which appeals to the prurient interest in sex.

The complaint alleges Netflix “knowingly” promoted visual material which “depicts the lewd exhibition of the genitals or pubic area of a clothed or partially clothed child who was younger than 18 years of age at the time the visual material was created, which appeals to the prurient interest in sex, and has no serious, literary, artistic, political, or scientific value.”

Netflix, Inc. indicted by grand jury in Tyler Co., Tx for promoting material in Cuties film which depicts lewd exhibition of pubic area of a clothed or partially clothed child who was younger than 18 yrs of age which appeals to the prurient interest in sex #Cuties #txlege pic.twitter.com/UJ1hY8XJ2l

— Matt Schaefer (@RepMattSchaefer) October 6, 2020

Netflix has previously defended the film in statements, calling the project "a powerful story about the pressure young girls face on social media and from society more generally growing up.”

The media giant doubled down on Tuesday. "Cuties is a social commentary against the sexualization of young children,” a spokesperson for Netflix told Fox News. “This charge is without merit and we stand by the film."

The French-Senegalese director of Cuties, Maïmouna Doucouré, has defended her film after coming under a barrage of criticism over claims it hyper-sexualizes young girls

Meanwhile, “Cuties” writer and director, French-Senegalese filmmaker Maïmouna Doucouré, also previously penned an op-ed for the Washington Post. In it, she wrote, “We, as adults, have not given children the tools to grow up healthy in our society."

The film tells the coming-of-age story of an 11-year-old Senegalese girl as she discovers her maturing self, all while looking for acceptance in her religious family and group of young dancers she hopes to befriend.

The movie sparked backlash and even led to the hashtag #CancelNetflix trending on social media.

In a statement on Tyler County District Attorney Lucas Babin office's Facebook page on Tuesday, Babin said that after watching the movie, he "knew there was probable cause to believe it was criminal.”

“The legislators of this state believe promoting certain lewd material of children has destructive consequences,” Babin continued. “If such material is distributed on a grand scale, isn’t the need to prosecute more, not less?”

He added: "A grand jury found probable cause for this felony, and my job is to uphold the laws of this State and see that justice is done."

In a statement to Fox News last month, the Parents Television Council (PTC) called for President Trump and the Department of Justice to probe Netflix about "Cuties" and for its alleged "pattern of behavior."

“We are ultimately asking the President to instruct the DOJ to investigate Netflix not just for this film, but for its pattern of behavior,” said Melissa Henson, program director of the Parents Television Council, a nonpartisan education organization advocating responsible entertainment. “We hope to get Netflix to be more responsible and refrain from sexualizing kids for entertainment going forward.”

Last month, Turkey's broadcasting watchdog said it would order Netflix to block access locally to the film on grounds that it contains images of child exploitation.

October 07, 2020