The man who shared sex and nude scenes featuring over 100 female actors on Reddit has now been convicted in the first Danish criminal case concerning violation of the right of respect in copyright law.
In Frederiksberg District Court, he admitted to systematically sharing sex and nude scenes from Danish feature films and series on a porn website and in the Reddit group “SeDetForPlottet” (WatchItForThePlot). Today, the 40-year-old man, who went by the username “KlammereFyr” (NastierGuy) on Reddit, received his sentence. He was sentenced to seven months’ suspended imprisonment and 120 hours of community service for gross violations of copyright, including violating the right of publicity of more than 100 aggrieved female actors relating to their artistic integrity. The sentence also includes circumstances surrounding his activities on an illegal file-sharing service, where he shared 25 TB of films and series.
The court chose to postpone the rights holders’ claims for damages to a civil lawsuit.
In NSK’s press release about the verdict, Special Prosecutor Jan Østergaard states:
“I am satisfied with the verdict. The defendant edited and shared film sequences without the permission of the rights holders, and the court took this seriously.”
Historic criminal ruling on actors’ artistic integrity
The Rights Alliance reported the case to the police in 2023 on behalf of the Danish Actors’ Association, Danish Film Directors, the film producers concerned, and DR and TV 2. The ruling is believed to be the first criminal conviction concerning moral rights under copyright law, including actors’ rights of respect.
Maria Fredenslund, CEO of the Rights Alliance, says:
“The ruling emphasizes that the legal system takes action in cases where the illegal sharing of films and series not only constitutes a financial loss for the rights holders, but also violates the professional integrity and personhood of actors. The ruling sends an important, preventive signal about the seriousness of creating and sharing infringing content at the expense of others—whether the purpose is financial gain or recognition among peers. This is precisely what copyright law is all about—respect for both the work and those behind it.”
Maria Ventegodt, CEO of the Danish Actors’ Association, says:
“In the Danish Actors’ Association we are incredibly happy on behalf of both our members and the arts. With this ruling, our members receive important recognition of the violation they have been subjected to. The ruling is also important for the art of film and the possibility of creating good stories on film, because the actors can now trust that the authorities will crack down on the display of nude scenes outside of context.”
Søren Balle, spokesperson for Danish Film Directors, says:
“At Danish Film Directors, we consider it crucial that a ruling has now been made in this landmark case. We do so on behalf of all the aggrieved artists for whom the case has had significant costs: When nude scenes are taken out of the context for which they were originally created and are shared illegally – solely for the sexual content of individual scenes – it is a gross violation of the rights of the actors involved, but also of the director’s rights to his work. The case establishes how important it is to protect the performers and creative artists, and their right to decide for themselves how their performances are used. This is even more important at a time when copyright and “truth” are under pressure, partly due to AI and deepfakes.”
Nude scenes were viewed 4.2 million times
Between March 2022 and May 2023, the convicted man shared nude and sex scenes featuring over 100 female actors. The man, who went by the username ‘KlammereFyr’, highlighted the sexual elements of the scenes by cropping and lightening video clips that had been taken out of their original artistic context. He uploaded the clips featuring the female actors to a porn site, from where he shared them with the Reddit group’s approximately 6,000 members. On Reddit, he had described the clips with the names of the actresses and details about the sexual content of the scene, while also encouraging users to send requests for clips featuring specific actresses. The 347 video clips were viewed a total of 4.2 million times before they were removed.
The film industry focuses on boundaries
When sex and nude scenes are shared outside their artistic context on a porn website and on Reddit, they change meaning in a way that is extremely offensive to the rights holders. The Danish film industry has guidelines that protect those involved in sex and nude scenes and ensure that the scenes are essential to the narrative of the works. Intimacy coordinators are present during filming to ensure that actors’ boundaries are not crossed, while agreements between industry parties limit the use of footage from sex and nude scenes in marketing. As the first criminal conviction establishing the right of respect, the case emphasizes that copyright infringements can have far-reaching consequences for the infringed works—and those at the forefront.
Press contact:
Tina Schütz Bonnichsen
Project Manager for Press and Communication at RettighedsAlliancen, tel. 41 41 20 93, tina.bonnichsen@rettighedsalliancen.dk