Olivia Munn claims director ‘wanted to ruin’ her career over on-set clash

Actress Olivia Munn has opened up about a spiteful director who allegedly tried to ruin her career over a fiery on-set clash.

A director Olivia Munn worked with allegedly tried to kill her acting career in retaliation for their on-set feud.

The actress, 45, alleged on the Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast earlier this week that her manager informed her that an unnamed filmmaker had been badmouthing her to casting directors.

She said her rep told her, “Hey, you’re gonna get the role. But first, I guess there’s another director who they know and he says that on The Newsroom you were late all the time and really combative.”

Munn denied the director’s claims about her tardiness and chalked up the rest to him just “trying to bash” her because they had disagreements about creative differences on set.

Olivia Munn has opened up on the director that tried to "ruin" her career. Photo: Supplied

She said she worked with the filmmaker on Seasons 2 and 3 of the popular HBO series, and they particularly butted heads over her romance storyline with Thomas Sadoski’s character, Don Keefer.

“He kept trying to force me to carry that storyline — only on my side,” Munn claimed.

She also alleged that the director would ask her to flirtatiously “smile” or “kiss” her love interest when her character, Sloan Sabbith, was supposed to be in the middle of working.

“I’ve got this new Bloomberg machine, and I’m so excited, and he’s like, ‘Can you look out at him and smile?’” the X-Men: Apocalypse star claimed.

Munn claimed that one “insane” request was when Sabbith found out Keefer had been doing “insider trading” and the director told her, “I don’t think that you’re that angry at him. It’s kind of funny.”

Olivia Munn, centre, and the cast of The Newsroom.

“I just fought back so much,” she said, claiming that the final straw for her was one scene when she simply had to tell the director, “No, I’m not doing (that).”

He allegedly responded, “Look, it’s my job as a director to see all the different colours of the rainbow and you are looking at only one colour, and I don’t think you realise how you’re coming off.”

When she asked him to clarify how she was being perceived — to which he allegedly replied, “Really forceful and strong” — the Predator star said she told him, “Great, that’s what I wanted,” and walked away.

Olivia Munn with husband John Mulaney at the Oscars in 2024. Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images

Olivia Munn at a screening of The Predator. Photo: Mark RALSTON / AFP

Once their issues became known to those involved in her future auditions, Munn said she had her reps explain the situation and she said she still got the role.

“But I will always remember that,” the Your Friends & Neighbors star reflected, “just because of our conflicts of how we approached a role, he wanted to ruin my chances of getting anything else.”

According to IMDb, there were 11 male directors that worked on The Newsroom from 2012 to 2014.

Munn’s rep did not immediately return Page Six’s request for further comments on the matter.

This story first appeared in Page Six and was republished with permission.

Originally published as Olivia Munn claims director ‘wanted to ruin’ her career over on-set clash