Not a lawyer, but from my understanding of libel law, the "public figure" thing isn't the problem. Merely being famous (and famous for being falsely accused!) w

Not a lawyer, but from my understanding of libel law, the "public figure" thing isn't the problem. Merely being famous (and famous for being falsely accused!) won't necessarily make you a public figure for libel purposes. But there's another part of the standard: a defendant must knowingly say things that are substantially false. Referring to Ms. Knox as a "convicted murderer" in a news article, for example, is deceptive in context but it is technically correct. She was convicted. And then on the movie side, it's explicitly fiction, and the character does not share her name. So they can claim the defense that any "false" claim is about their invented character, not about her... and by the way, they have lots of first amendment juice for artistic expression. In the end, you're right. It's a sad story, but she doesn't appear to have legal protection from libel law. The filmmakers should probably be ashamed of themselves, but you don't make a Matt Damon movie without a go-ahead from some high-priced lawyers who know they're in the clear from a liability standpoint. Though, ethics perhaps weren't considered...