More Bail Out on Basic 2

The future of troubled sequel Basic Instinct 2 is again in question now that Bruce Greenwood has bailed on the project in favour of WW II sub drama Below. Greenwood, who attracted rave notices for his performance as John F Kennedy in Cuban Missile Crisis thriller Thirteen Days, was due to play a psychiatrist opposite Sharon Stone in the less-than-eagerly anticipated follow-up to the 1992 hit. He's the latest in a string of actors to have rejected the part, among them Michael Douglas (who starred in the original) and Kurt Russell, and made his decision to quit when it looked unlikely that the film would begin production before the actors and writers strike. Keen to capitalize on the heat from 13 Days, Greenwood sensibly jumped ship to Below, in which he'll star opposite Tigerland's Matt Davis and Brit actress Olivia Williams. Basic Instinct 2 has looked shaky from the start. It has proved impossible so far to cast a leading man and studio execs are becoming increasingly edgy as the budget heads inexorably north. On that score, director John McTiernan's insistence on shooting in New York (rather than a cut-price Canadian stand-in such as Toronto) has not helped, and neither has Stone's salary demands which are still in the region of $15m. Whether she is worth that much and whether the film itself - despite reports of a solid script -is worth the grief remains to be seen.