Brendan Fraser Taking 'William Tell' Producers to Court. (Image: David Shankbone (CC) via wikipedia)
Brendan Fraser is suing the makers of “William Tell: 3D” for not giving him the promised compensation of $2.25 million as his acting fees. The principal photography of this William Tell biopic hasn’t even started yet but the actor is still demanding the payment, as according to him, the 3D movie’s production delays are a fault of the producers and therefore, he should get paid.
Celebrity news website TMZ has obtained the paperwork of Fraser’s lawsuit and in those legal documents, he claims that he gave up several other movies in order to maintain his affiliation with “William Tell: 3D.”
According to the terms of his agreement with the movie’s producers, he was supposed to receive his payment of $2.25 million in October 2011 irrespective of the fact that the shooting had begun or not. But he did not receive anything from them and the date passed by, after which Fraser decided to take legal action against the movie’s producer Todd Moyer and his partners.
The delays in the movie’s production were a result of financing difficulties, although Moyer claims that those issues have now been sorted out. He explained: “This is the first I have heard of this lawsuit. As we told Mr. Fraser’s reps, we are ready, willing and able to make the movie for the September 3rd start date. [Producer] Julius Nasso and I have the movie fully financed.
“Unfortunately, Mr. Fraser does not seem to be interested in making the movie as a 2D film as the producers intend to do. This is not a contractual decision Mr. Fraser has the ability to make.”
The “George of the Jungle” star is seeking a total payment of $3 million in acting fees and damages.