Writer denies rip-off claims

2010-03-08 14:41

Los Angeles -Writer Mark Boal denied accusations that he stole the characters for his acclaimed Iraq war drama The Hurt Locker  after winning the best original screenplay Oscar on Sunday.

Boal, who conceived his script after being embedded alongside a US Army bomb squad, insisted his story was a work of fiction just days after a federal lawsuit was filed against him by soldier Jeffrey S Sarver.

"Jeff is a brave soldier and the screenplay is a work of fiction and it's not based on any one person's story," Boal told reporters backstage at the Kodak Theatre. "And that's really all I have on it".

Boal said his spell in Baghdad in 2004 was an "eye-opening experience".

"I thought the story of the guys who had some of the most dangerous jobs in the world would make an interesting story to show the war in a much broader stage," Boal said.

Boal had earlier dedicated his Oscar to troops serving in Afghanistan and Iraq after receiving his award.

"I would also like to thank and dedicate this to the troops, the 115 000 who are still in Iraq, 120 000 (in) Afghanistan, and the more than 30 000 wounded and 4 000 who have not made it home," Boal said.

- AFP

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