Model Sues Couples Retreat for 'Degrading' Use of Photo

Irina Krupnik objects to being used as 'masturbatory prop'
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 12, 2010 7:07 AM CST
Model Sues Couples Retreat for 'Degrading' Use of Photo
Irina Krupnik and Dara Sowell attend the Raffles Hotels & Resorts and Elite Traveler Celebration of the Latest in Luxury Travel on October 1, 2008 at Daniel in New York City.   (Getty Images)

Irina Krupnik found herself making an unwanted cameo in Couples Retreat when a bikini shot taken 10 years ago turned up as, er, inspiration for a character played by Jon Favreau to masturbate while his wife is in the powder room. Now the former model is suing NBC Universal for $10 million. The studio says it has the rights to use the photo, but Krupnik's lawyer says the release she signed doesn't cover its use in a "sexual and degrading context."


Making the situation even more degrading, say court documents, is the fact that Favreau is a “much older, dessicated” and “overweight” character. “Certainly, NBC Universal has the resources” to find a willing participant in such “lascivious” behavior, Krupnik’s lawyer tells the New York Post. The entire situation, he notes rather oddly, “would be a crime if Mr. Favreau attempted it on a New York City subway.”
(More Irina Krupnik stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X