Don't mess around with Sonny Corleone! James Caan, who played the legendary mobster in The Godfather is suing Fish Weir Filmworks and Daniel Adams for $5 million in a dispute over non-payment on a movie deal. Caan, represented by top Los Angeles lawyer Marty Singer, alleges he accepted a deal from the defendants on June 24, 2008 to star in a movie called The Lightkeepers. Caan was to be paid "$1,000,000 in cash on a pay-or-play basis...and $1,000,000 in deferred compensation," according to the complaint. Caan's complaint alleges that the defendants assured him financing was in place, causing him to not accept other work, as the movie was scheduled to start filming approximately on Aug. 11, 2008 and last for eight weeks. Caan alleges the defendants backed out of the deal, and said there was a problem with the start date and that financing did not exist, even though they had previously assured him it did.
Caan, who most recently starred on TV's Las Vegas is suing for breach of contract and fraud, among other things. Perhaps the most colorful part of the lawsuit is where Singer writes: "Daniel Adams and his company Fish Weir Filmworks, LLC like some miscreant characters from the hit television drama Las Vegas thought they could pull one over on James Caan and get away with it. They were dead wrong. Caan is not one to be hustled or cheated by Hollywood players and he's calling their bluff."
Ouch!