Johnny Depp’s Notorious B.I.G. Movie Pulled A Month Before Release
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Johnny Depp’s Notorious B.I.G. thriller City Of Lies has been pulled from the schedule a month before it was set to hit theaters.
The movie, formerly known as LAbyrinth, was slated to open Sept. 7 in North America by Global Road Entertainment. No new date has been set for the film.
The move comes amid a series of woes for the actor, including a damaging Rolling Stone profile in June, that make any publicity campaign tough.
While Global Road is pulling its film, at least for the time being, Warner Bros. is going full steam ahead with the November tentpole Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes Of Grindelwald, whose ensemble cast includes Depp. Last month, the actor appeared at San Diego Comic-Con to plug the Harry Potter spinoff, which hits theaters Nov. 16.
After skipping the panel discussion, Depp showed up at the end of the Fantastic Beasts presentation dressed in character to deliver a creepy speech. In spite of fans voicing their concerns online about his presence in the movie after allegations of physically abusive behavior involving ex-wife Amber Heard emerged, the actor received applause and cheers from the Hall H crowd.
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes Of Grindelwald is set to bow Nov. 16. Unless City Of Lies opens before then, Grindelwald will be Depp’s next film in theaters.
Brad Furman (The Infiltrator) directed City Of Lies, in which Depp stars as disgraced LAPD Detective Russell Poole, whose biggest case — the murders of Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G. — remains unsolved. Forest Whitaker also stars in the movie, which was produced by Miriam Segal’s Good Films.
Last month, a City of Lies crewmember sued the actor, saying Depp twice punched him on the Los Angeles set of the crime pic and that he was fired from the production when he refused to promise not to sue over the incident.
Also in July, Depp settled a $25 million fraud case against his former business managers a month before trial was set to begin. That trial would have examined how the actor’s fortune was lost.
This article originally appeared on the Hollywood Reporter.
