American Hustle movie makers sued for $1m over microwave quote

The makers of American Hustle are being sued for $1 million over a 10-second quote by Jennifer Lawrence about a microwave.

Her character, Rosalyn Rosenfeld, sets the 70s oven on fire with tin foil and in the following rant claims it "takes all of the nutrition out of food".

"It's not b*******, I read it in an article by Paul Brodeur," she tells her husband, played by Christian Bale.

But Mr Brodeur, a real-life journalist who wrote about the possible radiation hazards of microwaves in the 70s, said he never made that particular claim.

He has filed a lawsuit demanding $1 million (NZ$1.3m) in damages for defamation, saying the film attributes his name to a scientifically unsupportable statement about "taking nutrition out of food", ABC News reported.

The journalist, now 83, also wants Atlas Entertainment, Annapurna Productions and Columbia Pictures to remove his name from the film.

He believes a viewer could come away thinking he was incorrect and lacked knowledge about microwave radiation, damaging his career.

American Hustle was loosely based on the FBI Abscam sting to catch corrupt politicians and businessmen.

The Oscar-nominated film does say in the disclaimer that only parts are true but while the main characters had their names changed, Mr Brodeur's is kept.

He claims the move has exposed him "to hatred, contempt, ridicule or disgrace," and injured his reputation "as a skilled writer on scientific subjects."

The case has not yet been heard in court.

- Independent