Why was Busta Rhymes ordered not to report to the set of his latest move?
The New York mayor's Office of Film, Theatre & Broadcasting cited an unexplained "security concern" when barring the rapper from the "Order of Redemption" set over the weekend. Rhymes, who has been in trouble with the law in New York several times over the past year — from an arrest for driving with a suspended license to busts for talking on a cell while driving and charges that he beat his former limo driver in a dispute over back pay (see "Busta Rhymes Charged For Alleged Assault; Released On Bail") — was slated to co-star in the crime thriller with actor Tom Berenger ("Platoon") that began shooting over the weekend in New York and New Jersey.
But then Julianne Cho, the office of film spokesperson, announced that the production agreed not to have Rhymes in scenes shot in New York after the Police Department raised public safety concerns. MTV News asked Cho to clarify why the concern was raised and by whom and if it was tied to a specific incident involving Rhymes, but no response to that question was received at press time. MTV News also requested clarification on whether a request of this type had ever been made of a film shooting in New York.
Instead, Cho sent an e-mail response that read, "The NYC Mayor's Office of Film, Theatre & Broadcasting always coordinates closely with the Police Department on film and television shoots. The film 'Order of Redemption' completed a successful shoot on Saturday with the usual support from the NYPD film division. The production agreed that Busta Rhymes would not be participating in the scenes shot here after the Police Department raised public safety concerns."
The Associated Press speculated that the banning of Rhymes (born Trevor Smith), 34, from the set might be tied to frustration from the New York Police Department over Rhymes' reluctance to speak to investigators about the still-unsolved investigation into the murder of the rapper's bodyguard, Israel Ramirez, on the New York set of one of Rhymes' music videos last year (see "Police Want To Question Busta Rhymes About Fatal Shooting At Video Set"). An NYPD spokesperson said the request came from the mayor's office and not the NYPD and denied that it was any form of "payback" to Rhymes for not cooperating with the investigation.
"No. We don't do that," the NYPD spokesperson said about any suggestion of payback.
Rhymes' lawyer, Scott Leemon, said he was out of town when the ban came through, but that he would be meeting with Rhymes' management shortly and would have an official comment later this week. Rhymes' management company could not be reached for comment.
"This is tremendously unfair to Busta who has been nothing but professional during this project," the movie's director Jeff Celentano said in a statement. "This is a bigger loss for the city of New York."
