Joe Francis "surprised" and "amazed" Ashley Dupre is suing him

Girls Gone Wild founder Joe Francis says he was "very surprised and in fact amazed" when he was told that Ashley Dupre -- the hooker that bought down New York governor Eliot Spitzer -- had filed suit against him.

"It is incomprehensible that Ms. Dupré could claim she did not give her consent to be filmed by Girls Gone Wild, when in fact we have videotape of her giving consent, while showing her identification," Francis said in a statement Monday.

In the suit, Durpi, 22, is seeking $10 million from Francis and his company, Girls Gone Wild, for misuse of her name and image for profit.

Francis had publicly offered Dupre a $1m deal for a Girls Gone Wild photo shoot, but found GGW tapes of Dupre from 2003 during negations with her lawyers, and the deal was called off.

"She refused this offer and in fact if she’d like to reconsider, we’d be happy to discuss. She should keep in mind, it’s considerably more than the Governor of New York paid her, and our activities aren’t illegal," he said Monday.

Asked in March about reports Dupre was underage during the GGW shoot, Francis said, "It doesn't matter."

He reiterated his stance on Monday.

"She’s seeking $10 Million for topless photos taken in front of a room full of people, including two newspapers and multiple crews we had in the room," he said. "These images were taken in public places and contain no sexual contact. We expect to triumph in this matter and continue to offer the best and hottest girls."

Francis' statement ended with a declaration that a video of Dupre giving her consent will be available online imminently.