'City of Lies': Johnny Depp-led Notorious B.I.G. crime thriller pulled from release amidst brewing controversies

Previously titled 'LAbyrinth', Johnny Depp-starring crime thriller 'City of Lies' has been pulled from its theatrical release, just a month before the scheduled date on September 7.

The movie, also starring Forrest Whittaker alongside the 'Pirates of the Caribbean' actor, was supposed to be a take on the murder investigations of rapper Notorious BIG, also referred to as Biggie Smalls, who was killed in 1997 shortly after the murder of another iconic rapper, Tupac Shakur. With Brad Furman tackling the direction, the thriller follows Depp as disgraced LAPD detective Russell Poole while Whittaker takes on the role of Jack Johnson, a journalist who joins forces with Poole to uncover the truth behind the notorious murder. 

While the subject matter seems worth all the hype surrounding the thriller, in days leading up to its release, however, 'City of Lies' has been shrouded by a cloud of controversies. In fact, the latest news came from film's distributor Global Road Entertainment, who confirmed to the press on Monday that the Depp-led drama is being shelved for the time being and won't release on its due September 7 date in the US. 

No further update on a revised release date or the reason why the thriller has been yanked off the release schedule is available at the moment. But as it turns out, this is yet another hurdle in the series of woes for the Depp-starring movie. Earlier there were reports of a crew member filing a lawsuit against the 55-year-old Hollywood actor, alleging that Depp had assaulted him at the movie's Los Angeles set. 

The allegations also included claims that the said member was fired from the production when he didn't agree to not sue, The Guardian reports. 

Depp's share of bad press, however, doesn't end here as the actor was also in the news recently over a $25m fraud case involving his former business managers, which was settled just before the trial. While in the latest scenario, regarding the release of the Notorious BIG thriller, distributor Global Road seems to be taking a step back, promotions for Depp's other movie -  'Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald' - has begun in full swing. 

Set to hit the theaters on November 16, the Warner Bros-produced Harry Potter spinoff could become Depp's next release, in case 'City of Lies' is delayed further.