A man falsely accused of voting fraud in the conspiracy film “2000 Mules” tried to hold its producers responsible Friday, asking a federal judge to rule in his favor.

But the moviemakers, including conservative filmmaker Dinesh D’Souza and the election group True the Vote, said they couldn’t defame a man whose face was blurred and who wasn’t identified by name.

U.S. District Judge Steven Grimberg didn’t signal how he would rule, asking skeptical questions of both sides before deciding whether to send the case to a jury or dismiss it.

“This case is not that complicated. It’s about defendants working together to spread a lie,” said Lea Haber Kuck, an attorney for Mark Andrews, an auditor from Gwinnett County who brought the suit. “They accuse him of committing a crime ... and expose him to ridicule, hatred and contempt.”

The lawsuit centers on an eight-second surveillance video featured in “2000 Mules” that shows Andrews returning absentee ballots for himself and four family members at a drop box before the 2020 election.

D’Souza, speaking as the narrator, tells the audience “What you are seeing is a crime. These are fraudulent votes.”

State election investigators cleared Andrews, and D’Souza later apologized, saying the film was based on “inaccurate information.” Dropping off ballots for family members is legal in Georgia.

Attorneys for D’Souza and True the Vote blamed each other in court. D’Souza’s lawyer said True the Vote’s research misled him into believing that...

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