Bond star Eva’s $1m battle to be paid for cancelled f ilm
EVA GREEN is poised to take centre stage in a $1million lawsuit at the High Court after film producers pulled the plug on a sci-fi thriller in which she was set to star.
The 39-year-old actress, who is currently appearing in BBC1’s The Luminaries, was due to begin shooting A Patriot alongside Charles Dance and Helen Hunt over seven weeks last summer.
But after filming in Dublin was repeatedly postponed, film company White Lantern Film (Britannica) Ltd shut down the production, according to documents filed by Ms Green. The Bond star, who played Vesper Lynd in Casino Royale, is now suing the firm for $1million (£800,000) which she claims is held in an escrow account under a ‘pay or play’ agreement – a movie industry arrangement that means an actor will receive the negotiated fee even if the film fails to go ahead.
Set in a futuristic authoritarian state, A Patriot was to follow the story of a Border Corps captain played by Ms Green who begins to question her allegiance to the regime. The film was to have been directed by Dan Pringle from his original screenplay.
It had previously been set to star Tim Robbins and Kathy Bates, but both had to drop out due to scheduling conflicts.
In her writ, Ms Green, who lives in London, says she agreed to star in A Patriot on May 15 last year. Shooting was originally scheduled to start in August, but was delayed twice.
Ms Green claims she is entitled to the money, but the film company alleged last October that she had materially breached the agreement so was not eligible for it. The writ alleges the company failed to give any information about the alleged breach.
In February, Ms Green was told Sherborne Media Finance had taken over White Lantern and ‘purported to give notice of termination of the artist agreement’. Ms Green argues that was too late.
The French actress is asking London’s High Court to rule she is entitled to the money and that the film company, which is yet to file its response to the claim, pay her legal costs.
Last night, Sherborne Media Capital said it was ‘fully aware of Ms Green’s claim’ but for ongoing legal reasons, it was unable to comment.