14 DAY TRIAL // It's a known fact that actors can make millions from their movie roles, but just how much money can you lose when you choose to drop out of a movie? Actress Evan Rahel Wood has just found out the possible answer to that question, as she's just been slapped by “10 Things I hate About You” sequel producers with a lawsuit for $30 million (€22 million).
Deadline quotes her representative when he says that this lawsuit “is a bullying tactic from financially troubled producers.” In other words, they're trying to scare her back into doing the movie because they're strapped for cash.
The actress backed down from the movie project she initially agreed to do, and now the producers are suing for big bucks because they claim that they were forced to close down production on January 2013, something they say is within their rights.
In the same lawsuit, it's mentioned that Wood refused to return to the movie set in November 2013, when filming resumed, and that this cost them a significant amount of cash they are now trying to recover through legal means.
Apart from the 30 million, Wood will be forced to also pay the attorney fees in case she loses the trial. Her representative, however, doesn't think that the lawsuit holds water however. He explains that “the production shut down in February 2013 when the producers ran out of money.”
In Wood's defense, he adds that “Even after that, Evan agreed to resume production in Nov. 2013 by which time the producers said they would have cleared up their issues. However, the producers still could not get their act together, nor did they pay Evan money that was owed.”
It turns out that Evan quit the movie because she didn't receive any money for her work, just promises and postponing, and they never seemed to become reality. “Repeated subsequent promises by the producers to resume production and pay Evan also turned out to be false.”
So, in consequence, Evan's legal camp feels that there is no danger of their actress client having to pay the enormous amount, because, in their view, “Enough is enough. The producers, not Evan, have breached contract.”
Whoever is at fault here, the actress or the producers, the case will now have to be settled in court, and it will be left up to a judge to decide whether or not Wood is going to have to fork over the 30 million for the alleged breach of contract.