Lee Daniels Puts an End to Damon Dash Lawsuit With $1.7 Million Settlement
As part of the deal over the contract dispute, the Roc-A-Fella co-founder agrees to give up any co-executive producer credit on the ‘Empire’ co-creator’s Richard Pryor biopic project.
AceShowbiz –
Filmmaker Lee Daniels agreed to pay over $1.7 million (£1.3 million) to settle his lawsuit with rap mogul Damon Dash.
The pair reached a confidential settlement over a contract dispute related to a Richard Pryor biopic in November (2018), and now the terms of the deal have been obtained by The Blast.
Daniels agreed to pay Dash the cash in instalments, with the last payment due by the beginning of 2021.
Last year, Dash sued Daniels, accusing him of breaching their contract over the biopic they were planning to work on. He claimed Daniels failed to inform him of developments.
As part of the settlement deal, Dash agreed to give up any co-executive producer credit on the project. He also agreed not to “make any derogatory or disparaging statement(s)” about Daniels or his co-defendants and to remove all negative social media posts pertaining to Daniels, including video of a confrontation with Daniels at a Diana Ross concert.
Meanwhile, Daniels has set the cast for his latest movie, “The United States vs. Billie Holiday“, which will start shooting in Canada next month (October 2019).
Singer Andra Day will play jazz and blues legend Billie Holiday in the film, supported by “Bird Box” actor Trevante Rhodes, Garrett Hedlund, and “Orange Is the New Black” star Natasha Lyonne.
“It is an extraordinary responsibility to tell the story of the iconic Billie Holiday,” Daniels says. “Her story is very personal to me and I hope to do justice when bringing to light this profound and complicated soul – a great artist and an unsung civil rights warrior.”