{"id":2603741,"date":"2026-05-17T13:56:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-17T17:56:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/florida-police-officers-sue-ben-affleck-and-matt-damon-claim-details-in-new-action-thriller-are-too-real\/"},"modified":"2026-05-17T14:00:21","modified_gmt":"2026-05-17T18:00:21","slug":"florida-police-officers-sue-ben-affleck-and-matt-damon-claim-details-in-new-action-thriller-are-too-real","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/florida-police-officers-sue-ben-affleck-and-matt-damon-claim-details-in-new-action-thriller-are-too-real\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida Police Officers Sue Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, Claim Details in New Action Thriller Are Too Real"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">36<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fflorida-police-officers-sue-ben-affleck-and-matt-damon-claim-details-in-new-action-thriller-are-too-real%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2603741&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Two Miami-Dade Sheriff\u2019s Office officers, Jason Smith and Jonathan Santana, are suing Artists Equity (a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gina-carano-dropped-by-talent-agency-after-star-axed-from-disney-show-over-social-media-post\/\" title=\"Gina Carano Dropped By Talent Agency After Star Axed From Disney Show Over Social Media Post\">film company owned<\/a> by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon) over the Netflix thriller **\u201cthe Rip.\u201d** They claim the movie includes too many real-life details from a 2016 narcotics case in South Florida-where police found more than $21 million connected to a suspected marijuana trafficker-damaging thier reputations.<\/p>\n<p>The lawsuit says the film portrays criminal acts and scenarios that give viewers the impression the characters are based on the plaintiffs, citing similarities such as allegations about theft of seized drug money, violence against officers, cartel communications, arson, <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >repeated law-enforcement protocol violations<\/a>, and even an execution of a federal agent.The complaint notes the actors\u2019 characters are based on that real case even though Smith and Santana are not named and were not involved in production.<\/p>\n<p>Affleck and Damon have saeid the story is loosely based on accounts provided by Miami-Dade Police Capt. Chris Casiano, who served as a technical advisor. Artists Equity\u2019s attorney responded that the film does not claim to present the true story and that Disclaimers in the credits state it. The article also notes the film debuted in January and is rated 78% \u201cFresh\u201d on Rotten Tomatoes.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><br \/>\n<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC \"-\/\/W3C\/\/DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional\/\/EN\" \"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/TR\/REC-html40\/loose.dtd\"><br \/>\n<?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><html><body><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>MIAMI (AP) \u2014 Two South Florida police officers claimed Ben Affleck and Matt Damon\u2019s recent action thriller \u201cThe Rip\u201d used too many real-life details in its fictionalized narrative, causing harm to the officers\u2019 personal and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/convicted-hoaxer-jussie-smollett-facing-multiple-lawsuits-chicago-police-sue-for-130k\/\" title=\"Convicted Hoaxer Jussie Smollett Facing Multiple ...s: Chicago Police Sue for 0K\">professional reputations<\/a>, according to a defamation lawsuit.<\/p>\n<p>Jason Smith and Jonathan Santana, sergeants in the Miami-Dade Sheriff\u2019s Office, filed the lawsuit in Miami federal court earlier this month against Artists Equity, a film production company owned by Affleck and Damon. Court filings don\u2019t say how much the officers are suing for, but the civil complaint says they\u2019re <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gay-employee-hits-disney-with-anti-discrimination-suit-at-start-of-pride-month\/\" title=\"Gay Employee Hits Disney with Anti-Discrimination Suit at Start of Pride Month  \u00a0\">seeking compensatory damages<\/a>, punitive damages and attorney fees, as well as a public retraction and correction.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Rip\u201d features Affleck and Damon as South Florida police officers who find millions of dollars inside a house. Parts of the movie were inspired by a real 2016 case, where police found over $21 million linked to a suspected marijuana trafficker in a Miami Lakes home.<\/p>\n<p>Affleck and Damon have said while promoting the film that the story is loosely based on accounts from Miami-Dade Police Capt. Chris Casiano, who served as a technical advisor on the film. Damon told the Associated Press during a January interview that he and Affleck spent time with Casiano and other narcotics officers in preparation for the film.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe really wanted to kind of understand what those dynamics were like,\u201d Damon said. \u201cI mean, these units are very tight because they\u2019re really putting their lives in each other\u2019s hands, and they\u2019re doing something that\u2019s very dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>An attorney for Artists Equity declined to comment when reached Monday by the Associated Press. But in a March 19 response to the plaintiffs\u2019 demand letter, Leita Walker, an attorney for Artists Equity, wrote that the film does not purport to tell the true story of that incident or portray real people, which had been stated by a Disclaimer in the film\u2019s credits.<\/p>\n<p>Although Smith and Santana aren\u2019t named in the film and weren\u2019t involved in its production, the lawsuit claims that Santana was serving as the lead detective assigned to the real case, and Smith was the sergeant who supervised the investigative team. The film\u2019s inclusion of real details about the case gives the impression that the characters are based on the plaintiffs, the suit said.<\/p>\n<p>This, the lawsuit claims, has given friends, family members and colleagues the impression that the plaintiffs committed the criminal acts that appear in the film, which include conspiring to steal seized drug money, murdering a supervising officer, communicating with cartel members, committing arson in a residential neighborhood, endangering the lives of civilians, repeatedly violating core law-enforcement protocols, and executing a federal agent rather than making an arrest.<\/p>\n<p>Walker wrote in March that the plaintiffs haven\u2019t even identified which particular character is supposed to be based on Smith or Santana, so even if \u201cThe Rip\u201d was actually about a real-life narcotics team, there\u2019s no way to connect any of the characters to the plaintiffs.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Rip,\u201d directed by Joe Carnahan, debuted in January on Netflix. It\u2019s currently rated 78% Fresh on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rottentomatoes.com\/m\/the_rip\">Rotten Tomatoes<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>_____<\/p>\n<p><em>Associated Press video journalist Brooke Lefferts in New York contributed.<\/em><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-style: italic;\">The Western Journal has not reviewed this Associated Press story prior to publication. Therefore, it may contain editorial bias or may in some other way not meet our normal editorial standards. It is provided to our readers as a service from The Western Journal.<\/p>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f7f7f7; color: #171717; display: flex;font-size: 16px;font-weight: 600;line-height: 1.5;margin: 24px 0;padding: 18px 20px 18px 30px;text-align: left;\">\n<div style=\"align-self: stretch;border-left: 3px solid #171717;flex-shrink: 0;padding-left: 20px;\"><\/div>\n<p><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/\">Choose The Western Journal as your preferred source on Google and never miss reporting that defends truth, protects freedom, and advances Western civilization<\/a><\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/court-of-appeals-in-swing-states-drop-major-ruling-hurting-kamala-harris-chances-against-trump\/\" title=\"Court of Appeals in Swing States Drop Major Ruling, Hurting Kamala Harris&#039; Chances Against Trump\">highly engaged readers<\/a>, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey == typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts = { \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs = [ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i = 0; i < inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! 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