The Inspiration for Jennifer Lopez's 'Hustlers' Character Is Threatening to Sue the Movie Studio

Samantha Barbash, the woman who inspired Jennifer Lopez‘s character Ramona in the movie Hustlers, is threatening to sue the film studio STX Films.

Barbash plead guilty in 2017 for her role in the ring of strippers who drugged clients and took their credit cards. She was sentenced to five years probation.

An attorney for Barbash says that the film studio did not pay for the rights to her life story and they’re threatening to sue if a deal isn’t worked out in 10 days, according to Variety. She previously told TMZ that she feels the movie defamed her because of the character’s drug use.

“We will defend our right to tell factually based stories based on the public record and look forward to resolving this matter before a judge,” an STX spokesperson said in a statement.

Working in STX’s favor is the Olivia de Havilland lawsuit, in which she sued FX Networks over how she was depicted in the Ryan Murphy limited series Feud. She lost the case and the court defended FX’s First Amendment rights.

The court said at the time, “Books, films, plays and television shows often portray real people. Whether a person portrayed in one of these expressive works is a world-renowned film star — ‘a living legend’ — or a person no one knows, she or he does not own history. Nor does she or he have the legal right to control, dictate, approve, disapprove, or veto the creator’s portrayal of actual people.”