Eva Green wants her salary despite the cancellation of the film, the production makes her look like a “diva”

DAY

French actress Eva Green finds herself at the heart of a legal battle in the United Kingdom to claim her fee despite the cancellation of a film, her lawyer believing Thursday that the production company is trying to pass her off as a “diva” that she is not. 

The 42-year-old French actress, star of Casino Royale in 2006 , was to star in a sci-fi movie –A Patriot– before production was finally halted in October 2019. She is suing the production company, White Lantern Films, claiming she is entitled to her CAD $1.3 million fee for the film, despite its cancellation.

But the British production company decided to fight back by launching its own lawsuit against the actress, believing that she had made “unreasonable demands” and harmed the production of the film.

The trial, which began on Thursday, is expected to last eight days.

The actress's lawyer, Edmund Cullen, claimed before the judges that Ms Green “bent over backwards” to make the project happen because it dealt with an “issue which concerns her very much, namely the disaster climate”.

But the lawyers of White Lantern Films estimate that the French actress expressed “a lack of confidence and a dissatisfaction” with regard to members of the production team. She was “increasingly reluctant to get involved,” in breach of contract.

They justify their accusations by relying on WhatsApp messages in which Eva Green allegedly called a member of the production team “evil”, “devious sociopath”, “liar and crazy”. She also allegedly called production manager Terry Bird a “moron” and “a finished asshole.”

“This case is designed to portray my client as a diva in order to grab headlines. and damage his reputation,” said Mr. Cullen, describing the charges against his client as “extraordinary”.

“She agreed on several occasions to postpone the start of the shooting. She agreed to have the production moved from Ireland to the UK. She has repeatedly offered to use part of her fees to fund production costs,” he listed in his written submissions.

For him, White Lantern Films wants to “blacken the name of an actress who hasn't breached a contract or missed a day on set in a 20-year career.”