Lena Headey slapped with a lawsuit for $1.5 million by her former U.K. agency over axed role in Thor: Love and Thunder

The agency is seeking an account of commission fees owed, an order for Headey to pay the fees, damages for breach of contract, interest, and reimbursement of legal fees.

• Mohnish Singh
• 01 July, 2022

By: Mohnish Singh

Game of Thrones actress Lena Headey has been sued for $1.5 million by her former U.K. agency Troika over unpaid commission fees.

These fees include Thor: Love and Thunder, a film Headey was cast in ultimately had her scenes cut from the film. Troika, which has now been branded as YMU, has claimed Headey specifically owes them a minimum of half a million dollars for Love and Thunder.

Her involvement in the Marvel Studios summer blockbuster was never advertised or officially announced, but a leading publication has confirmed that she did in fact have a role in director Taika Waititi’s original script. The details of that role remain undisclosed.

According to court documents, Headey joined Troika in 2005 after following her personal rep, Michael Duff, there from his previous agency Lou Carl Associates.

Duff co-founded Troika, which in 2017 merged with the James Grant Group. In 2018 the agency was acquired by a private equity firm and re-branded as YMU. Duff left Troika/YMU in early 2020 and Headey left the agency in May of that year.

However, the agency has claimed that under the terms of their agreement Headey still owes the agency commission fees on a number of projects as well as at least USD 300,000 on the film 9 Bullets and USD 650,000 for Showtime dramedy series Rita.

Headey was set to play the titular Rita character, but the show didn’t secure a series order beyond its pilot episode.

Troika is seeking an account of commission fees owed, an order for Headey to pay the fees, damages for breach of contract, interest, and reimbursement of legal fees.

In her defense, Headey claims she never signed any contract with Troika or with Duff, and that both parties were acting on an oral agreement formed when Duff was still at Lou Carl Associates in the late 1990s.

Her filings also point out that Troika was never Headey’s sole agent, as she is also represented by CAA in the US.