A US Army bomb disposal expert who served in the Iraq war is suing the makers of The Hurt Locker, claiming the Oscar-nominated film's lead character is based on him.
Master Sergeant Jeffrey Sarver claims he was cheated out of "financial participation" in the movie - a front-runner for the best film prize at the Academy Awards on Sunday.
Sarver says screenwriter Mark Boal was embedded in his three-person unit in 2004, and that the information he gathered was later used in the film.
He believes Will James, the film's main character (played by Oscar nominee Jeremy Renner), is based on him and says James' call signal, Blaster One, was uniquely his during his tours of duty.
Sarver also says he coined the phrase 'The Hurt Locker'.
Lawyer Geoffrey Fieger has filed a multimillion-dollar lawsuit in New Jersey federal court on behalf of Sarver, of Clarksville, Tennessee.
Article in Playboy magazine
Fieger says Boal's embedded reporting - over 30 days - led to an article the following year in Playboy magazine about Sarver, and that the story later was adapted by Boal for The Hurt Locker screenplay.
"If you do take the time to read (the Playboy article) and if you then go and view The Hurt Locker, you will see - and there will be no question in your mind - that 'Blaster One,' Sergeant Sarver, is the character in The Hurt Locker called Will James," Fieger said.
"The caveat in the movie that the movie is fictional and all the characters portrayed in the movie are fictional is a fictional statement in and of itself."
The movie's US distributor, Summit Entertainment, issued a statement saying it hopes "for a quick resolution to the claims made by Sarver".
"The film is a story about heroes depicting a fictional account of what brave men and women do on the battlefield," the company said.
"We have no doubt that Master Sergeant Sarver served his country with honour and commitment risking his life for a greater good, but we distributed the film based on a fictional screenplay written by Mark Boal."
Inspiration for character
Fieger said he filed the lawsuit - which names Boal and Oscar-nominated director Kathryn Bigelow, among others, as defendants - after voting for the Academy Awards had concluded.
Fieger claims Boal was consulting with Bigelow while he was embedded.
He said greed was the reason Sarver wasn't permitted to participate in the film or be recognised for his role as the inspiration for the main character.
Now, he said: "They're gonna owe him a whole lot of money and recognition."
Sarver said he was never offered a role in the making of the movie.
"I could have helped out a little bit," he said. "But they chose not to (involve me)."
The Hurt Locker has been nominated for nine Oscar awards, including best film, best director, best actor and best original screenplay.
