Justifications

Piven’s Tearful Explanation

Actor tells union he did not break contract.

This may not jive well with the quick-talking, tough-guy persona of Ari Gold: According to The New York Times, “[Jeremy] Piven, the Emmy-winning star of Entourage on HBO, twice broke down in tears as he described a health scare that he said made him exhausted and disoriented during some Speed-the-Plow performances and ultimately left him fearful that he could die.” Piven was meeting with fellow actors from the union in order to convince them that he had not broken his contractual obligations when he dropped out of Speed-the-Plow due to what he said was mercury poisoning. The producers of the play filed a grievance complaint against Piven in January, but no action was taken against the actor due to a split decision.