Michael Polish sued for alleged assault on crewmember

Director Michael Polish is facing legal action for allegedly assaulting a male crewmember on location in Montana last year.

Variety has reported that art director Jack Renner, who was hired to work on a project entitled Bring on the Dancing Horses, claimed that shortly after he arrived on the set of the film, he became engaged in a conversation about dogs with Polish that sharply escalated.

According to papers filed in a court in Butte, Renner alleges that he and Polish were holding a conversation about their dogs when Polish made a reference to shooting dogs that bite and said something about “always packing heat,” pointing his thumb and finger in the shape of a gun.

The Big Sur filmmaker allegedly then lost his temper with Renner and attacked him, throwing him to the ground before raging, “Get off my f**king show, you f**ker!”

Renner said his head hit the ground as he fell, and he was helped up to his feet by Polish’s actress wife, Kate Bosworth.

Polish is also accused of screaming at Renner’s wife, who had been recruited as the COVID safety coordinator on set, as the pair left and returned to their hotel room.

They subsequently received a visit from the show’s production supervisor, who insisted he would “fix” the situation and urged them not to discuss the altercation with anyone, but Renner later reported the incident to local police. He also called for an ambulance and was taken to a local hospital for treatment for his head wound.

Renner alleges his actions prompted the production supervisor to call his wife and verbally abuse the pair, claiming the couple was “no one” and Polish and Bosworth were “kings”.

He is quoted as saying: “You deserved it. It doesn’t matter if (you) did nothing wrong. You are wrong.”

Renner spent the night in the hospital and was diagnosed with an injury to his lower back, which has since caused him further health issues and hampered his ability to continue working as an art director.

Both he and his wife were fired from the project, and they are suing for assault and breach of contract.

However, Polish’s attorney pushed back at the lawsuit, insisting Renner was the one who tried to attack the director and then attempted to negotiate a settlement.