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In a dramatic turn of events, two Miami police sergeants who were instrumental in a landmark $22 million drug bust have initiated a federal lawsuit. This legal action centers around the 2026 film “The Rip,” featuring Hollywood heavyweights Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. The officers claim the movie misrepresents them as corrupt law enforcement officials, drawing on the real-life case they were involved in.
The lawsuit targets Artists Equity, the production company established by Damon and Affleck, along with Falco Pictures, another key collaborator in the film’s creation. Notably absent from the lawsuit is Netflix, the platform responsible for the movie’s distribution.
Promoted as “inspired by true events,” “The Rip” dramatizes the Miami-Dade narcotics unit’s discovery of $21.9 million concealed within orange buckets behind a false wall. Nevertheless, the lawsuit contends that the film’s storyline, which suggests criminal wrongdoing by the officers, is entirely fictitious.
In the film, both Affleck and Damon assume the roles of Miami narcotics officers, a portrayal that has evidently struck a nerve with the real-life counterparts who were part of the historic cash seizure. On set, the actors are seen stepping into the shoes of these investigators, a role that has now become the center of this legal dispute.
The actual investigation took place in 2016, with officers executing the seizure at the residence of a gardening supply store proprietor suspected of being involved in a marijuana trafficking operation. This operation marked a record-breaking cash seizure for the Miami-Dade Police Department, now known as the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office.
In the movie, members of the narcotics unit face suspicion for allegedly stealing some of the money under false pretenses and for their own benefit. It also depicts a fictional DEA agent implicated in the murder of a Miami police lieutenant, who himself is killed by Affleck’s character later, without due process.
Read the complaint:
Ben Affleck and Matt Damon on set as Miami narcotics investigators in “The Rip,” a 2026 movie partly inspired by the historic seizure of $22 million in alleged marijuana proceeds. (Claire Folger/Netflix © 2024)
While the film had a fictionalized twist, the lawsuit contends that it included enough real-world facts to damage the reputations of Jason Smith and Jonathan Santana, including location settings, details about the false wall, the cash being found in orange buckets, and a loaded Tech 9 firearm stashed with the cash.
Smith was the sergeant supervising the real investigation. Santana was the lead detective and has since been promoted to sergeant as well. Their names are not used in the movie, but the lawsuit alleges they were the basis for the characters Damon and Affleck play on screen.
According to the lawsuit, after the movie trailer’s release, a county prosecutor contacted one of them asking, “whether any allegations of theft had ever been made in connection with the case, and further stated that his office would be looking into it.”
They allege they have also faced questions about “how many buckets they kept,” whether they used stolen money to pay for home improvements, and the lieutenant’s murder.
Matt Damon attends Netflix’s “The Rip” New York premiere at Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, on Jan. 13, 2026, in New York City.
“I can’t believe you killed another cop,” a county prosecutor allegedly told one of the plaintiffs after the movie came out, according to the lawsuit.
On top of that, the film allegedly credited a department member who had no connection to the investigation and was paid for his consulting.
Smith and Santana are seeking damages exceeding $75,000 for allegations of defamation and emotional distress. The lawsuit also accuses Hollywood as a whole of negatively depicting police on screen, noting that police departments around the country are struggling with hiring and officer retention.
Damon and Affleck themselves have publicly said police are “underappreciated” and “underfunded” in an interview with Howard Stern promoting the movie.
Prior to the lawsuit, they had asked for a public retraction and correction and either a prominent disclaimer attached to the film or an end to its distribution.
Ben Affleck and Matt Damon attend the premiere of “The Rip” at Alice Tully Hall in New York City on Jan. 13, 2026. (Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images)
The film’s producers countered that it was a fictionalized movie that carried a disclaimer already and that the characters are not real people.
Lawyers for Smith and Santana have until tomorrow to file an amended complaint to satisfy the judge’s jurisdiction concerns, according to court documents. If they fail to meet the deadline, the case would be dismissed.
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