Bryan Singer fired from Queen biopic

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December 5, 2017 | Arts / Entertainment

Bryan Singer fired from Queen biopic

Director Bryan Singer will no longer be working on Bohemian Rhapsody, the biopic of band Queen.

Questions arose about the status of the film this week when Singer was no longer showing up to work due to a family issue. He has not been on set since the Thanksgiving break in November, and even before that his presence was limited and unpredictable.

A rep for Singer claimed "a personal health matter concerning Bryan and his family" had made him unavailable.

Rumors have surfaced that Singer was not getting along with the movie's lead, Rami Malek. Malek reportedly claimed that he was tired of Singer's absence, unreliability and unprofessionalism. Malek and Singer eventually had it out, resulting in a massive argument and Singer allegedly throwing things.

And at one point, Tom Hollander, who plays Queen manager Jim Beach, quit the movie because of Singer's behavior. (He later agreed to return to continue filming.)

Fox Film had enough and finally showed Singer the door.

“Bryan Singer is no longer the director of Bohemian Rhapsody,” 20th Century Fox spokesman Dan Berger confirmed.

Singer has released a statement:

“With fewer than three weeks to shoot remaining, I asked Fox for some time off so I could return to the U.S. to deal with pressing health matters concerning one of my parents. This was a very taxing experience, which ultimately took a serious toll on my own health. Unfortunately, the studio was unwilling to accommodate me and terminated my services. This was not my decision and it was beyond my control.

Rumors that my unexpected departure from the film was sparked by a dispute I had with Rami Malek are not true. While, at times, we did have creative differences on set, Rami and I successfully put those differences behind us and continued to work on the film together until just prior to Thanksgiving. I wanted nothing more than to be able to finish this project and help honor the legacy of Freddie Mercury and Queen, but Fox would not permit me to do so because I needed to temporarily put my health, and the health of my loved ones, first.

Of course, we hope that whatever issue Singer's family is dealing with is resolved quickly. A new director is expected to be named this week.