Vet to Sue Makers of Hurt Locker

Jeffrey Sarver, who served as an Army master sergeant and bomb-disposal expert in Iraq, plans to sue the makers of The Hurt Locker because he says the film’s main character is based on him. Sarver also claims he coined the term “the hurt locker,” and that the main character’s call sign, “Blaster One,” was his in Iraq. The film’s screenwriter, Mark Boal, was embedded with Sarver’s unit, and Boal adapted the article he wrote for Playboy for the film. The Hurt Locker’s American distributor issued a statement saying it wants “a quick resolution to the claims made by Master Sgt. Sarver.” The statement continues, “We have no doubt that Master Sgt. Sarver served his country with honor and commitment, risking his life for a greater good, but we distributed the film based on a fictional screenplay written by Mark Boal.”