Hollywood director Michael Bay has been attacked in Hong Kong while shooting the latest Transformers film in the city, suffering injuries to his face, reports said Thursday.
Police said they had arrested two men in the early hours of Thursday morning after the attack on a 48-year-old man named by local media as the "Armageddon" director, on location in the city filming "Transformers: Age of Extinction".
The two men reportedly confronted Bay and his film crew in the city's Quarry Bay district, claiming they were owed HK$100,000 ($12,900) compensation for filming in the area.
Police have now handed the case to specialist anti-triad units reserved for tackling Hong Kong's notorious criminal gangs.
"When the movie crew was filming, one of the arrested persons was seeking HK$100,000 [from Bay], leading to a scuffle. Another arrested person suddenly attacked him," police said in a statement.
While local media named the Hollywood director as the target of the attack, police would only confirm the victim as being a 48-year-old "Michael".
"The right side of his face was injured, but he refused to go to the hospital," the statement said.
The fourth installment of the "Transformers" franchise starring Mark Wahlberg and Nicola Peltz is scheduled to hit theaters in June.
Hong Kong's striking Victoria Harbour is believed to be among the film's locations, along with the city's dense and bustling streets.
© (C) 2013 AFP
14 Comments
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Fadamor
Movie critics are getting more militant!
Argus Tuft
There are quite a few Transformers fans who wouldn't mind that Michael Bay got punched in the face.
smithinjapan
Bad news and media for the mafia. Some morons will end up dead because of this.
CoconutE3
The studio in Hollywood must be thinking "small price to pay" for making millions off Chinese viewers when movie is released.
malfupete
Funny, when he was knocked out, apparently there were huge explosions going on all over the place
OssanAmerica
Oh it was about money. I thought it was because Megan Fox isn't in the film.
hikkifan17
Those two were idiots to attack a famous director.
globalwatcher
Japanese Yakuza commonly use this fear tactics for street vendors in ex change of their protection. It is called a "Basho Dai". Japan needs to clean up Yakuza.
Fadamor
Except this happened in Hong Kong. What you REALLY meant was that China needs to clean up the Triad, right?
greenlight
Didn't pay protection money to the right clan?
HonestDictator
Yeah the problem in HK is their own movie industry is practically run by the Triad or w/e they call themselves there. So since Transformers isn't being funded by one of their own shady studios these crooks will try to extort what they can from those poor lost Hollywood people far away from the US.
MeanRingo
So, is Bay going to start carrying an extra HK$100,000 or gun?
John Constantine
The two men, aged 27 and 28, were arrested and face charges of blackmail, assault and assaulting police officers, she said.
Paramount Pictures gave a somewhat different account of the incident, which it said occurred on the film's first day of production in Hong Kong.
It said in a statement that a man allegedly under the influence of a narcotic substance rushed onto the set wielding an air conditioning unit and swung it at Bay's head. It said Bay ducked and wrestled the air conditioning unit away from the man.
Police arrested the man and two companions, and no one on the set was injured, Paramount said.
Attacked with an Air Conditioner.....have not heard that one before.