Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Ice Cube Dragged After Pulling Out Of $9 Million Movie Deal Because He Refused COVID Vaccine

Ice Cube Dragged After Pulling Out Of $9 Million Movie Deal Because He Refused COVID Vaccine
Jamie Sabau/Getty Images

For some celebrities making a stand in support of what they strongly believe in, it's not always about the money.

Actor and rapper Ice Cube reportedly dropped out of a $9 million movie deal and a winter in Hawaii because he refused to get a COVID vaccine as mandated by the production's cast and crew.


According to the Hollywood Reporter, the Friday star departed from Sony's upcoming comedy film Oh Hell No—produced by Matt Tolmach and the film's co-star Jack Black—after refusing a request from producers to get vaccinated.


Production on the film was to start this winter in Hawaii with director Kitao Sakurai—the filmmaker who recently found success with Netflix's Bad Trip—after the rapper and Black decided to team up back in June.

But when Black injured himself filming a stunt for Conan that same month, production on Oh Hell No came to a halt.

Sources told the media outlet producers are looking for Ice Cube's replacement after his refusal to cooperate with the vaccine mandate.

Twitter users did not hold back when speaking out against the rapper.






Ice Cube had been a strong advocate for wearing masks throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

In August, Bacone College in Oklahoma thanked the actor for donating 2,000 face masks, saying his philanthropy helped students, faculty, and staff "protect themselves and one another during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic."

The star also launched a "Check Yo Self Before You Wreck Yo Self" brand of T-shirts to sell in April 2020, with proceeds benefitting front-of-line healthcare workers.

Oh Hell No is the second film Ice Cube dropped out of. He would have co-starred in the boxing movie, Flint Strong, but is no longer involved.

The Hollywood Reporter said the circumstances leading to his departure from the film were unclear.




Vaccination has become a problematic issue among cast and crew on a number of Hollywood productions ever since a tentative, short-term agreement between the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) and industry guilds—including SAG-AFTRA, IATSE, the DGA, and the Teamsters—was unveiled in July.

The agreement stated producers would have the option to "implement mandatory vaccination policies for casts and crew in Zone A on a production-by-production basis."

Sets are divided into different "zones" corresponding to the proximity of actors to different levels of protection under current safety protocols.

Zone A is an area on set where cast and crew typically work in close proximity without personal protection equipment.



Ice Cube and Sony did not respond after the Huffington Post for confirmation and comment.

More from Entertainment/tv-and-movies

Pedro Pascal; JK Rowling
Toya Sarno Jordan/Getty Images for Disney; Dave J Hogan/Getty Images

Pedro Pascal Opens Up About Why He Called Transphobe JK Rowling A 'Heinous Loser'

Actor Pedro Pascal recently explained why he said Harry Potter author and anti-trans activist JK Rowling behaves like a "heinous loser," and suffice it to say he has absolutely no regrets.

The comment came in reference to Rowling gloating over the U.K. Supreme Court's recent decision to define what exactly constitutes a "woman" in the eyes of U.K. law, a decision that subjects trans people to violence, among other problems.

Keep ReadingShow less
JD Vance
Johannes Simon/Getty Images

Vance Dragged After Making Cringey Middle Finger Joke About 'Pink-Haired People' At GOP Dinner

Vice President JD Vance was criticized profusely after he attempted to make a joke mocking liberals during his appearance at the Ohio Republican Party dinner this week—only to have people calling out his lack of class for holding up his middle finger as he delivered the punchline.

Vance was in the middle of giving the event's keynote speech when he said the following:

Keep ReadingShow less
Donald Trump
Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Trump Ripped After Posting Disturbing Parody Music Video About His Attack On Iran

President Donald Trump is facing harsh criticism after he shared a music video featuring the 1980 song "Bomb Iran"—a parody of The Regents song "Barbara Ann" that is best known for being covered by the Beach Boys—amid a ceasefire between Israel and Iran that could further inflame tensions in the Middle East.

The controversial parody song by Vince Vance & the Valiants plays over footage of B-2 stealth bombers, the same aircraft used to drop 14 GBU-57 bunker-buster bombs on Iranian nuclear facilities, including the Fordow enrichment plant, Natanz complex, and Isfahan site.

Keep ReadingShow less
Donald Trump; Zohran Mamdani
Omar Havana/Getty Images; Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

Trump Just Tried To Slam Zohran Mamdani's Looks And Voice—And It Was Projection At Its Finest

President Donald Trump lashed out at Zohran Mamdani after the 33-year-old democratic socialist handily defeated former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo in New York City's Democratic mayoral primary on Tuesday—only to be called out for projecting his own feelings of inadequacy onto the star candidate.

Mamdani ran a campaign centered around economic populism, arguing that the city, a global financial center, has grown unaffordable for everyday residents, citing soaring rents and grocery prices, and outlining policies aimed at reducing the cost of living.

Keep ReadingShow less
salad
Anna Pelzer on Unsplash

Doctors Explain Which Seemingly 'Healthy' Foods Aren't All That Good For Us

Every day it seems like some new health fad pops up.

Eat this, don't eat that.

Keep ReadingShow less