Actress Gina Gershon halted production yesterday of a pilot for the nighttime soap "Ugly Betty" over demands that she be allowed to keep a $650 pair of shoes.
According to reports, Gina plays a Donatella Versace-like fashion diva with a heavy Italian accent and she kept everybody waiting for "more than an hour" on location while she consulted with her attorney and fussing with producers.
"It's a classic case of an actress letting her part go to her head," an insider told the New York Daily News. "The funny part is that they hired a dialect coach to make her sound Italian, and she was talking to the producers in the accent, saying that she couldn't sign the contract until her lawyer read the contract."
"Then she says she will not sign unless the contract is changed to let her keep her wardrobe, and Disney has a strict policy saying actors don't get to keep their wardrobes."
The show's co-executive producer, Silvio Horta, gushed that it was just a "minor, minor delay" and added her own views: "They're a pair of shoes that are pretty fabulous, and I'd want to keep them as well." She also said Gina is "incredibly talented and wonderful to work with."
Gershon's manager, Jason Weinberg, issued the standard denial: "Once [Gina] connected with her rep, everything was cleared up in three minutes. There was no diva behavior, and they had a great day of shooting, and she loved playing the character. It sounds like someone is turning a comedic moment into drama."
Personally, I'm with Gina on this one - bah, 3 minutes or an hour ... you go, girl!
