Fox halted production Dec. 1, saying it was because of the "unexpected unavailability" of the helmer.  Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Bryan Singer's past directing credits include The Usual Suspects and Superman Returns 
 
 The director of the new Freddie Mercury biopic, Bohemian Rhapsody, has been fired due to "unreliable behaviour".  The filmmaker, who was helming 'Bohemian Rhapsody,' was terminated by the studio because of his absence from the set. In a statement to The Hollywood Reporter, Singer said, “I wanted nothing more than to be able to finish this project and help honor the legacy of Freddie Mercury and Queen, but Fox would not permit me to do so because I needed to temporarily put my health, and the health of my loved ones, first.” 
 
 Fox on Monday terminated Singer after a series of confrontations with Rami Malek, who is playing Queen frontman Freddie Mercury. Singer's prolonged absence was the final straw, and so the studio decided to terminate him under his pay-or-play contract. In his statement, Singer said, "“Rumors that my unexpected departure from the film was sparked by a dispute I had with Rami Malek are not true. While, at times, we did have creative differences on set, Rami and I successfully put those differences behind us and continued to work on the film together until just prior to Thanksgiving.” 
 
 The studio, which has about two more weeks of principal photography remaining on the film, is expected to name a new director within the next few days.
– Bryan Singer, the director who faced allegations of sexual assault before the dawn of the #metoo movement, has been fired from Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody. In announcing the dismissal Monday, 20th Century Fox blamed the "unexpected unavailability" of Singer, noting production had come to a halt on Dec. 1. Sources tell the Hollywood Reporter that Singer was absent from the London set several times prior to December, leading actor Tom Hollander to temporarily quit. There was also reportedly an altercation between Singer and Rami Malek, who plays Queen frontman Freddie Mercury, in which Singer is said to have thrown an object. But sources say the dispute had been resolved and Hollander had agreed to resume his role as Queen manager Jim Beach when Singer failed to return to set after the Thanksgiving break. Singer says there was a very good reason he didn't return: he was caring for an ailing parent in the US. "I asked Fox for some time off ... to deal with pressing health matters concerning one of my parents ... which ultimately took a serious toll on my own health," Singer said in a statement. "Unfortunately, the studio was unwilling to accommodate me and terminated my services." He also confirms he had "creative differences" with Malek but the pair "put those differences behind us and continued to work on the film together until just prior to Thanksgiving." With only two weeks left of filming, 20th Century Fox says it will name a new director to the film, which will keep its December 2018 release date, per the BBC.