Evan Rachel Wood sued for USD 30m for leaving film

Los Angeles: Evan Rachel Wood was sued by the producer of `10 Things I Hate About Life` with the plaintiff claiming that the actress collected a USD 300,000 retainer and then bailed on the project.

According to court documents filed yesterday, the production company 10 Things Films LLC wants more than USD 30 million from the star, including at least USD 20 million in lost profits; USD 500,000 in lost financing costs; USD 6 million in lost investments; and USD 5 million in damages, reportedly. A rep for Woods, meanwhile, calls the lawsuit "preposterous." "The lawsuit is preposterous and simply a bullying tactic from financially troubled producers. The production shut down in February 2013 when the producers ran out of money. Even after that, Evan agreed to resume production in Nov 2013, by which time the producers said they would have cleared up their issues," the rep said in a statement. "However, the producers still could not get their act together, nor did they pay Evan money that was owed. Repeated subsequent promises by the producers to resume production and pay Evan also turned out to be false. Enough is enough. The producers, not Evan, have breached contract," he added. The production company alleges in the lawsuit that Wood accepted the lead role in the film and took a USD 300,000 advance, and then "seemingly changed her mind about desiring to complete the film during principal photography, ultimately refusing without any legal justification to fulfil her contractual obligations and instead opting to walk out on the project." Directed by Gil Junger, the film is a follow-up to the hit 1999 comedy `10 Things I Hate About You`.