HOLLYWOOD star Minnie Driver has quit an upcoming British film after the production ran out of money.
Insiders revealed the Oscar-nominated actress walked off amid chaos on the set of Angels in the Asylum — with crew said to be owed around £600,000 in unpaid wages.
Hot Fuzz star Simon Pegg, an executive producer and also due to appear in the movie, is also said to be owed money.
Filming halted last month 15 days into a planned month-long shoot.
A source told The Sun: “They were told they would be paid. But this has gone on for weeks now and there is no pay.
“Minnie has left to go and work on another film. It’s chaos. Patience is wearing thin now, but really for most of the crew it wore out weeks ago.”
Angels in the Asylum is the first full length feature for British director Rob Sorrenti.
It is inspired by a BBC exposé on women incarcerated at Long Grove Asylum, Surrey, a former hospital for the mentally ill, because they had typhoid.
Good Will Hunting star Minnie was due to appear with Pegg and Fantastic Beasts actress Katherine Waterston.
Co-producer Heather Greenwood, who worked on the Gavin & Stacey Christmas special, and director Rob are said to have expected more cash from distributor Parkland Pictures.
But John Cairns, boss of the UK firm, said there was no agreement beyond its sales agent role.
In an email shown to The Sun, producers told crew earlier this month: “We understand this has been frustrating and appreciate your patience.”
Another message told workers: “Once we receive the necessary funds, our priority remains to facilitate timely payments to all involved parties.”
Our insider added: “Crew-wise you’re looking at 60 to 70 people affected.
“Some have been paid a bit, some haven’t had anything.”
When filming was halted producers said: “This decision weighs heavily on us, as we genuinely hope to resume as soon as possible, though we cannot yet determine when that will be.”
In a statement, Heather and Rob said: “It was devastating when we were forced to halt filming due to our second round of financing failing to materialise.
“Since that time, we have been desperately trying to raise finance with the goal of addressing our outstanding obligations to both our cast and crew.
“We have also put some of our own funds into the project, but sadly, it hasn’t been enough to rectify the situation.
“We remain determined to find a solution. We also want to make it very clear that we, the producers, have not been paid for our work on the production.”
Parkland said: “This won’t be the end of the road for Angels in the Asylum.
“It is an extremely good script/story, and everyone has worked very hard and is determined to find a way to complete the film with everyone paid.”
Simon Pegg is an English actor, comedian and screenwriter who first came to prominence as co-creator and star of Channel 4 sitcom Spaced in 1999.
The cult show, directed by Edgar Wright, ran until 2001, before the pair went on to make the Three Flavours Cornetto film trilogy, consisting of Shaun of the Dead (2004), Hot Fuzz (2007) and The World’s End (2013).
Pegg – who also frequently works with long-time pal and actor Nick Frost – has gone on to appear in the Star Trek trilogy (2009-2016) and the Mission: Impossible film series alongside Tom Cruise, from 2006.
Born on February 14 1970 in Brockworth, Gloucestershire, Pegg studied at the University of Bristol.
While there he performed as a member of a comedy troupe called David Icke and the Orphans of Jesus, alongside David Walliams.
His early acting roles include WW2 miniseries Band of Brothers, as well as Brass Eye, I’m Alan Partridge and Big Train.
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