Natalee Holloway Miniseries Triggers Lawsuit

Natalee Holloway has been missing for 12 years, and her story is still embroiled in controversy ... a story that has triggered a new lawsuit.

Edward Kramer just filed suit against 2 production companies -- Brian Graden Media and Lipstick -- for allegedly stealing his idea for a miniseries about Holloway's cold case. He says what's worse, he worked for the companies for more than a year without getting as much as a penny.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ, Kramer claims after Lipstick put him in touch with BGM in 2014 to develop the Holloway project, he was tasked with doing a lot of the legwork, like figuring out how to turn it into a miniseries, doing interviews, and getting the pitch ready for NBC and Oxygen (which is airing "The Disappearance of Natalee Holloway" this week).

Kramer says when he began asking about compensation, he got the runaround.

He's asking a judge to block the airing of the show.

We've reached out to BGM ... so far, no word back.