Television producer Mercier Bangala has pleaded for help to evict actor Luthuli Dlamini and his girlfriend from his house, after they began illegally occupying the property last month following a payment dispute.
It's alleged that producer Mercier Bangala owes Dlamini R150 000 for a series that they shot in September last year called Empty Love.
The series didn't make it to TV. Sources close to the situation said that Bangala has made life very hard for the former Scandal actor as he is battling to make ends meet. "Bangala gave Dlamini a lead role in a drama series named Empty Love which was supposed to be shot for one month, but they ended up shooting it for three months. Some of the cast members quit the show because of payments," the source said.
However, Bangala said it was clearly stipulated in their contract that no cast or crew would be paid until they had finished filming the production, had it edited and sold to a broadcaster.
I have 21 other cast members in this series and no one has ever complained about the payment issue. I made it clear on contracts that payments would only be effected once we had sold the series. Luthuli knows that as well.
He laid the blame for having to cancel production on Dlamini, alleging that the actor kept missing shoots without warning the crew.
“In fact, it is his fault that we had to cancel production because he kept taking breaks that he never told anyone about, and he missed shoots so that he could go and film other work. He would go for weeks at a time and, as the main actor, there would be nothing we could do about that.”
Bangala said production had been cancelled late last year.
“The final straw was when he went to shoot another movie and came back with his hair cut short.
“I mean, how on earth were we supposed to film with him when he looked completely different?
I had to release everyone from the set and that was the last time we filmed. He then came back a few minutes after we had finished filming to say that he did not have anywhere to sleep, so he was going to go home with me unless I paid him his money.
The producer claimed that the actor later arrived at his home with a group of bouncers and occupied the house forcefully.
“They were hurling insults at me and sent very intimidating messages to my wife, saying that they would kill me.
“I have no more money left. I dried out all my money in that movie, which has now gone to waste because of this guy. Other actors do want us to continue filming, but I have already lost so much money that I am not even motivated to continue with anything.”
Bangala alleged that Dlamini had occupied his main bedroom suite, wore his clothes and posted bouncers in the house to make him uncomfortable.
“I am frustrated. I don’t know what to do. He has made himself and his girlfriend at home.
“They do as they please. He wears my clothes, sleeps in my bed and is making sure that I am as frustrated as possible by having his bouncers here and they keep intimidating me.
As we speak, he is in the main bedroom. I have even had to move to the cottage because I can’t live like this,” Bangala said.
Luthuli had not commented on the allegations made against him by the time of going to print.
