Jessica Alba Wants Playboy Stripped

Cover girl Jessica Alba is demanding that Playboy pull its March issue, saying she didn't agree to be on the cover and that the image may mislead readers into thinking she appears nude or partially nude in the magazine.

The cover shows the 24-year-old actress in a bikini, next to the headline "25 Sexiest Celebrities." Besides demanding that Playboy stop distributing the March issue, Alba is asking for "monetary settlement" for damages to her reputation and career.

In a Feb. 23 letter obtained by The Smoking Gun Web site, Alba's lawyers told Playboy the magazine used a photo of Alba meant to promote the movie "Into the Blue" without her consent. Sony Pictures, which owns the image, sent a separate letter alleging that Playboy initially offered to pay Alba to pose for the cover of the issue. When her publicist refused, Playboy resorted to using "false pretenses" to obtain the promotional shot, according to the letter.

"Playboy has violated my personal rights and blatantly misled the public who might think I had given them permission to put me on the cover when I didn't," Alba said in a statement.

A Playboy spokeswoman said Alba was placed on the cover after being chosen "sexiest star of the year" by its readers.

"Our editors assembled photographs of the top 25 vote getters for our annual '25 Sexiest Celebrity' feature, and we put her on the cover based on the poll results," spokeswoman Lauren Malone said.