Baby Reindeer creator and star Richard Gadd dated transgender actress during audition process

The creator of hit Netflix drama Baby Reindeer has been accused of “unwisely” dating a transgender actress while she auditioned for a part in the series.

Reece Lyons said comedian Richard Gadd had ‘conflated’ the two processes and she had been hurt by it.

It is the latest twist in an already gripping back-story to the surprise TV sensation.

Some 14million people have been poring over every detail of Gadd’s darkly comic drama based on his real-life experiences of being stalked by a woman, ‘Martha’, after meeting her in a London pub.

The series shows Martha’s obsession question was that of his ex girlfriend, a trans woman.

For the past week, the focus has been on Martha and the real-life version of her who has bitterly complained she was stalked by Gadd — rather than the other way round.

But now Gadd faces claims from actress Ms Lyons, who auditioned to play the part of his transgender girlfriend Teri in the drama.

Ms Lyons said she met Gadd in a bar, writing on X: “He began to tell me about his upcoming Netflix show that he had written.

“The role in question was that of his ex-girlfriend, a trans woman.

“I told him I was interested in auditioning and asked him to get in touch with my agent at the time. ‘But there is one other thing,’ he said. ‘What?’ I replied. ‘I find you really attractive.

“‘I said I didn’t think the conflation of the upcoming audition and dating each other at the same time was wise, and he said that he understood.’”

However the pair went on four dates between October and November 2021.

Ms Lyons wrote: “What if I say, no? Does that mean he would feel slighted, and I wouldn’t get the chance to audition?

“He hurt me. I also understand that there was no conscious intent to do so.”

She stressed she did not see herself as a “victim” of any “abuse”. But she warned others to be wary of becoming involved in a casting process “where somebody is simultaneously conflating a work opportunity with a dating dynamic”.

Casting for Baby Reindeer was conducted by production company Clerkenwell Films.

Hollywood website Deadline, which broke the story, said it understood Gadd did not have final approval on casting, but did give feedback to Clerkenwell on audition tapes.

In the end, Ms Lyons did not land the role, which went to actress Nava Mau.

On X, Ms Lyons did not name Gadd or directly reference Baby Reindeer, but Deadline said it had verified his identity.

The website claimed Clerkenwell Films had investigated Ms Lyons’ comments after she made the company aware of her X posts.

It said Gadd had not previously disclosed the romantic liaison to Clerkenwell.

The publication added that sources close to Gadd did not deny conversations about an audition took place during the period in which they dated.

A Clerkenwell source said her account and other evidence was enough to conclude that Gadd had behaved professionally and casting decisions were not compromised.

Deadline said Ms Lyons did not wish to comment beyond her X thread.