“Gott: In the Shadow of My Father” (originally named “Gotti: Three Generations”) seemed to be on a role after the debacle with Linsday Lohan’s role in the film. However, there’s another debacle, this time with Joe Pesci. This problem is so bad that he’s suing Fiore Films over his role in the film.
According to CinemaBlend via Deadline, Pesci is suing the company about the film because they’ve changed the role he’s playing after he started physically preparing for the role. Originally, Pesci signed on to play Angelo Ruggiero, John Gotti, Sr.’s right hand. To play Ruggiero, Pesci was told to gain 30 pounds and was offered $3 million. Later, after Pesci was already promoted as being a part of the film, Fiore Films told him he was playing a lesser role and offered him $1 million. Thus, the lawsuit.
The official language of the lawsuit reads:
Defendant has no intention of paying [Pesci] $3 million or having him portray Ruggiero in the film. Rather, plaintiff secretly planned to use [Pesci’s] name and likeness to promote the film and then to later concoct some pretext for terminating the contract so as to avoid paing plaintiff anything for the substanial publicity and ‘buzz’ that was generated.
According to the Associated Press, Marc Fiore, CEO of Fiore Films, said, “Before we had a deal, Mr. Pesci walked away.”
In any case, we’ll see what happens once the suit reaches court.
