Actor Adrien Brody has sued the producers of his Italian thriller Giallo, claiming he was misled about lucrative distribution rights and that they failed to pay him a $640,000 fee he is owed.
The Academy Award-winning star of The Pianist claims in a lawsuit filed Thursday in California that he was promised a ‘play-or-pay’ deal to star in director Dario Argento’s movie, meaning he would receive his $640,000 fee whether the film was made or not.
But after about a week of production Brody said producers failed to deposit the $640,000 into an escrow account. Brody alleges he signed a new contract agreeing to defer payment but only if granted “absolute right to withhold consent to the use of his likeness” until he was fully paid.
He is seeking his $640,000 fee, plus $2 million for breach of contract, fraud, breach of fair dealing and misappropriation of his public image, as well as an injunction against the release of the film on DVD.