Jerry West demands retraction from Winning Time over "cruel" and "deliberately false" portrayal

Los Angeles Times

The NBA icon and Los Angeles Lakers legend, via his attorneys, is calling for a retraction and apology within two weeks from today for his portrayal on the HBO series. Played by Australian actor Jason Clarke, Winning Time's West is a hot-tempered, foul-mouthed executive given to furious tantrums and mood swings. In a letter sent to HBO, Warner Bros., Discovery, and executive producer Adam McKay, West’s attorneys said Winning Time “falsely and cruelly portrays Mr. West as an out-of-control, intoxicated rage-aholic. The Jerry West in Winning Time bears no resemblance to the real man. The real Jerry West prided himself on treating people with dignity and respect. ‘Winning Time’ is a baseless and malicious assault on Jerry West’s character. You reduced the legacy of an 83-year old legend and role model to that of a vulgar and unprofessional bully — the polar opposite of the real man.” The letter also accuses Winning Time of damaging the Showtime Lakers' legacy. “Unfortunately, your false portrayal of the Lakers in your show has caused harm to the reputation of the Lakers organization and its people," said the letter. "Some of the individuals portrayed have passed away and are unable to defend themselves. For others, it has tarnished their reputations and shown them in a damaging false light...You took a happy and super successful Lakers era and turned it into a pulpy soap opera. You depicted the people in a false light, not at all who they are, to garner ratings and make money.” West's portrayal has been widely criticized. Longtime NBA journalist Marc Stein called the portrayal "viciously inaccurate." Longtime Boston Globe columnist Bob Ryan recently said, "If I were Jerry West, I would say call my lawyers. I don’t know what Jerry West ever did to (series director) Adam McKay to be portrayed in such an unflattering light, an unrealistic light, an embarrassing light, and that’s just for openers.” Longtime Lakers athletic trainer Gary Vitti, who spent two days last year as an actor and in-house expert on the set of Winning Time, quit because of the Jerry West portrayal. “It was a total mischaracterization of Jerry West,” Vitti said.  And Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, in a blistering Substack post published this morning, wrote: "It’s a shame the way they treat Jerry West, who has openly discussed his struggle with mental health, especially depression. Instead of exploring his issues with compassion as a way to better understand the man, they turn him into a Wile E. Coyote cartoon to be laughed at. He never broke golf clubs, he didn’t throw his trophy through the window. Sure, those actions make dramatic moments, but they reek of facile exploitation of the man rather than exploration of character."