IMDB Sued for $1 Million for Revealing Actress's Age

The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is the film industry's encyclopedia of data for filmmakers and actors, providing a wealth of information about the movies, past and present, and the people who make them (or aspire to). But was the IMDb in the wrong when it published the legal age of an actress/IMDb Pro user -- and did that act warrant the $1 million lawsuit she's now leveling at the website?

The Hollywood Reporter has the legal scoop:

The woman, who is said to be of Asian descent, says in the complaint filed in federal court in Seattle that she signed up for the pro version of Internet Movie Database in 2008. Soon thereafter, she noticed that the legal date of her birth was listed on her public profile. The plaintiff believes that the site was able to obtain her information because in signing up to iMDb Pro, she was required to give detailed personal and credit card information.

Attaching an age to her name was detrimental, she says.

"If one is perceived to be 'over-the-hill,' i.e. approaching 40, it is nearly impossible for an up-and-coming actress, such as the Plaintiff, to get work as she is thought to have less of an 'upside' therefore casting directors, producers, directors, agents/managers, etc. do not give her the same opportunities, regardless of her appearance and talent," the complaint states.

Well, yeah -- if IMDb Pro pulled her age from her credit card information and posted it, that's a biggie. Forget the ageism and sexism factor that may or may not have lost her work; in the least, it seems like a glaring privacy violation. The unnamed woman is suing for "breach of contract, fraud, and violation of privacy" with damages in the amount of $1 million, and is seeking a restraining order against the website.

• Actress Sues IMDb for $1 Million for Revealing Her Age [THR]