Oscar winner loses battle to stop release of film based on Scottish creator of OED
● Gibson claims he was promised final cut approval
Hollywood actor Mel Gibson has lost a legal battle to stop the release of a film in which he stars as the Scot who created the Oxford English Dictionary (OED).
The Professor and the Madman sees the Braveheart star play Sir James Murray, who, with help from a convicted killer, founded the dictionary.
Filming took place in Dublin in 2016 but a massive row broke out after production company Voltage started showing a cut of the movie which the Oscar-winning star was unhappy with.
He wanted extra scenes to be shot at Oxford University, where much of the story of the film actually took place, but claims they refused.
In a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles, Gibson, 62, alleged that Voltage Pictures has violated its agreement, which gives him approval of the final cut of the £20 million film.
However, following a court hearing Judge Ruth Kwan refused a request to hand the film rights over to Gibson and ruled Voltage were not in breach of contract.
She said: “Plaintiff did not submit admissible evidence showing the existence of an actual controversy with Defendants.”
Director Farhad Safinia says he was thrown off the project, and is suing for copyright infringement and defamation.
He had also asked for the current version of the film to be destroyed.
However, Voltage chief executive Nicolas Chartier hit back saying Gibson and Safinia had originally agreed to shoot the Oxford scenes – which involved 200 extras – at the library of Trinity College, Dublin, but changed their minds at the last minute.
He claimed the change of plan put the production over schedule, as well as over budget.
He said :“these issues caused the production to extend two days past the schedule of 40 shooting days and caused additional costs to the production, which was over budget by approximately $1.3 million.
“Mr Gibson claims to have final cut while refusing to watch the picture, work on the picture, or edit it.”
Gibson’s lawsuit, filed by attorney Jeffrey Mcfarland, stated: “The agreements require that things such as material changes to the screenplay, change of director from Mr Safinia to someone else, the final production budget and schedule, and selection of filming locations be agreed to by Icon and Mr Gibson.
“Further, as extra insurance that his vision of the film was protected, Mr Gibson has the right, if necessary, to select the final cut of the film that is released between a cut prepared by Mr Safinia and a cut prepared by Voltage.”
The film is based on Simon Winchester’s book and revolves around Murray discovering that his contributor, William Minor, played by Sean Penn, was a convicted killer and patient in the Broadmoor criminal lunatic asylum.
Winchester, who lives in Massachusetts, has praised Gibson’s Scots accent in the film which was panned for his role as William Wallace in 1995.
He said Scots would not be disappointed by Gibson’s portrayal.
He added: “It’s so long since I saw Braveheart. I think it was the action and not the accent that gripped me in that film.
“But I think Scots will approve of Gibson’s Scottish dialect.”
“Mr Gibson claims to have final cut while refusing to watch the picture, work on the picture, or edit it.”
NICOLAS CHARTIER