A settlement has been announced in a suit brought by British actress Emily Lloyd against a film studio and producers for more than $500,000 for a role she never played.
A day after Los Angeles Superior Court began hearing the case, in which Lloyd maintained she was deprived of a starring role with Cher in the film "Mermaids," lawyers for both sides emerged smiling from a courthouse conference saying a deal had been struck.The terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
Lloyd, 20-year-old star of the British film "Wish You Were Here," had asked for a salary of $435,000 she said she had been guaranteed for the role of a daughter struggling to grow up with a free-spirited mother, played by Cher.
Taking the unusual step for a young actress or actor of challenging the Hollywood system, she also asked for interest, bringing the sum to more than $500,000, plus unspecified punitive damages.
The role finally went to Winona Ryder. British actor Bob Hoskins played Cher's boyfriend.
Lloyd, who lives in England, maintained she had a binding deal with Orion Pictures, which financed and distributed "Mermaids," and with Mermaids, a production company created to produce the film.