I’m sure this is one of many, many Sony Hack stories we’re going to have over the next week or so. Just FYI. As previously mentioned, Wikileaks has published the entire cache of hacked documents from the Sony Hack, and while none of the new revelations are as OMG scandalous as the Angelina Jolie stuff, there’s still some damaging stuff in here. And I for one don’t feel bad at all about discussing it, mostly because some people deserve to be outed as miserable, terrible bullies and a—holes. People like David O. Russell.
Russell is rather famous for being a douchebag, although in recent years, his PR has maintained that he has “changed” and become a kinder, gentler person. But he’s still the same director who berates crew members. He’s still the same guy who berates actors and actresses. He’s still the same guy that George Clooney famously tried to choke (for good reason) on the set of Three Kings. Well, Russell directed American Hustle, the same film where Jennifer Lawrence and Amy Adams got paid significantly less than their male costars (Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Jeremy Renner). In newly discovered emails from journalist Jonathan Alter to Sony CEO Michael Lynton, Alter tells Lynton a secondhand story from the set of Hustle about Russell’s behavior:
Former Batman Christian Bale may have just been unmasked as a real-life do-gooder. The actor stepped in to defend his “American Hustle” co-star Amy Adams from a barage of “abuse” by the film’s director, David O. Russell, according to an internal Sony email exchange that’s been published by WikiLeaks.
The revelation came in the form of an email from journalist Jonathan Alter to his brother in law, Sony Entertainment CEO and chair Michael Lynton, detailing a source’s account of chaos on the set of the 2013 Oscar-nominated film.
“Are you guys doing anything else with him?,” Atler wrote to Lynton in a Sept. 12, 2014 email. “I know he’s brilliant but we have someone on our show who worked closely with him on ‘American Hustle’ and not only are the stories about him reforming himself total bulls-t but the new stories of his abuse and lunatic behavior are extreme even by Hollywood standards.”
Among the litany of off-screen drama allegedly unleashed by O’Russell detailed by Alter: “He grabbed one guy by the collar, cursed out people repeatedly in front of others and so abused Amy Adams that Christian Bale got in his face and told him to stop acting like an a—hole.”
Though at first cagey in his response, Lynton eventually seemed to confirm the incident to his wife’s brother in another email.
“Next film for fox,” he wrote. “Trust me I know all about the other.”
When Christian Bale is telling you to chill out because you’re acting like an a—hole, then it’s pretty bad. Bale is not some easy-going dude. Bale is intense, and he has his own history of prickly, douchey behavior. But in this instance, I’m glad Bale lost it and stepped up. I’ve always gotten the feeling that there’s a lot of love and respect between Bale and Adams in particular, and they bring out the best in each other professionally and perhaps personally too. Why would you even yell at Amy Adams in the first place? She’s like Miss Teacher’s Pet. Directors love her because she’s always prepared, professional and easy to work with. Only a douche-pig like David O. Russell would treat Amy like dirt.
Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet, Getty, WENN.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pLHLnpmirJOdxm%2BvzqZmbWpibIB5e8OaraKcj6Sss8HSrJylpI%2BWr7a%2FxJ2WmqWplK6lrcyslpygop7AtbXAp5abmZyarKi705igp5eYnsCgssCcnGg%3D